a! 


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A 


SaSLSBOV  'OOUiLnOVlEOST 

OF  VALUABLE  AND 

CURIOUS  ARTS, 

AND 

X^TBIiESTSHG  EXPERIMENTS, 

WHICH  ARE  WELL  EXPLAINED,  AND  WARRANTED  ^ 
GENUINE,  AND  MAY  BE  PERFORMED  EASILY, 
SAFELY,  AND  AT  LITTLE  EXPENSE* 

CONCORD  : 

PUBLISHED  BY  RUFUS  PORTER, 

\W»  VX/V* 

J.  B#  Moore,  Printer* 

1825. 


I 


DISTRICT  OF  NEW-HAMPSHIRE,  to  wit. 

District  Clerk's  Office. 

IT  REMEMBERED,  that  on  the  22d  day  cf  October, 
L,  s,  A.  D.  1825,  and  in  the  fiftieth  year  of  the  independence 

the  United  States  of  America,  RE  US  FOKTEK,  of  the 
said  district,  has  dt  posited  in  this  office  the  title  of  a book, 
the  right  whereof  he  claims  as  proprietor  in  the  words  following,  to 
•wit;  “ A Select  Collection  of  valuable  and  curious  Arts  and  inter- 
esting Experiments,  which  are.well  explained  and  warranted  genu- 
ine, anti  may  be  performed  easily,  safely,  and  at  little  expense In 
co ‘fortuity  to  the  act  of  the  Congress  of  the  United  State  s,  entitled 
64  An  act  for  the  encouragement  of  earning,  by  securing  the  copies 
of  maps,  charts,  and  books,  to  the  authors  and  proprietors  m such 
copies,  during  the  time  therein  mentioned  : anefaiso  to  an  act,  en- 
titled 44  An  act  supplementary  to  an  act,  entitled  an  act  for  the  en- 
couragement of  learning,  by  securing  the  copies  of  maps,  charts 
and  books,  to  the  authors  and  proprietors  of  such  copies,  daring  the 
times  therein  mentioned,  and  extending  the  benefits  thereof  to  the 
arts  o;  designing,  engraving  and  etching  historical  and  other  prints." 

SAMUEL  CUSHMAN, 

Clerk  of  the  District  of  New- Hampshire. 

A true  copy  of  Record  : 

Attest,  SAMUEL  CUSHMAN,  Clerk ■. 


JIDVmTISEMEKT, 

It  is  not  so  much  the  object  of  the 
author,  with  regard  to  the  various  arts 
treated  of  in  the  following  pages,  to 
convey  to  , professed  artists,  a more 
accurate  and  extensive  knowledge  of 
those  arts,  as  to  explain  some  of  the 
first  lines  and  principles  of  them,  for 
the  advantage  of  those,  who  may  be 
induced  to  practice  them  occasionally, 
either  for  profit  or  amusement.  The 
chemical  experiments  are  such  as  are 
calculated  to  combine  recreation, 
with  improvement  in  useful  knowl- 
edge— a knowledge  of  some  of  the 
leading  principles  of  chemistry.-— 
The  true  chemical  terms,  according 
to  the  new  nomenclature  (which, 
perhaps,  may  not  be  so  readily  un- 
derstood, by  some,  as  the  more  com- 
mon and  familiar  names,  but  will  be 
found  sufficiently  explained  in  the 
appendix)  have,  in  this  work,  been 
applied  to  the  various  articles  occa- 


IV 


ADVERTISEMENT. 


sionally  mentioned.  Very  few  sub- 
stances have  been  mentioned,  which 
are  generally  considered  poisonous, or 
otherwise  dangerous  ; but  it  may  be 
proper,  however,  for  those  who  may 
attempt  any  of  the  chemical  experi- 
ments, to  proceed  with  caution,  and 
carefully  avoid  the  fumes  produced 
by  chemical  action,  especially  in  me- 
tallic solutions  in  nitric  acid,  and  sub- 
limation of  mercury.  Several  arti- 
cles in  this  little  collection,  will  prob- 
ably be  found  to  contain  some  im- 
provements, and  if  it  prove  as  inter- 
esting to  others,  as  a similar  work 
would  formerly  have  been  to  the  au- 
thor, his  object  will  have  been  at- 
tained. 


TAB &E  OF  apMTS^TTS. 


1.  Water-proof  gilding  and  silvering, 

2.  The  art  of  burnish  gilding,  • 

3.  Ornamental  bronze  gilding,  - - • 

4.  To  enamel  picture  glasses  with  gold, 

5.  To  wash  iron  or  steel  with  gold,  * 

6.  To  wash  brass  or  copper  with  silver, 

7 To  give  wood  a gold,  silver,  or  copper  lustre, 

8.  To  print  gold  letters  on  morocco,  - 

9.  To  dye  silk  a brilliant  gold  colour, 

10.  To  dye  silk  a brilliant  silver  colour, 

11.  To  silver  looking  glasses,  - 
12  To  write  on  paper  with  gold  or  silver, 

13.  To  make  good  shining  black  ink, 

14.  Blue  ink,  ------- 

15.  Red  ink,  ------ 

16.  Yellow  ink,  - 

17.  Green  ink,  * - “ j ‘ 

18.  Purple  ink,  ------ 

19.  To  write  in  various  colours  with  the  same  pen,  ink 

and  paper,  - 22 

20.  Invisible  ink  for  secret  correspondence,  - - 23 

21 — 26.  Sympathetic  inks,  » 23,  24 

27.  Luminous  nk  that  will  shine  in  the  dark,  - 24 

28.  To  make  a writing  appear  and  disappear  at  pleasure,  24 

29.  To  make  a writing  vanish,  and  another  appear  in 

its  place,  - - - - - -25 

30.  To  restore  old  writing  that  is  nearly  defaced,  - 25 


Page 

9 

- 11 
12 

■ 13 

14 

15 

- 16 

16 

- 17 
17 

- 18 

19 

20 
21 
21 
21 
21 

- 21 


VI  TABLE  OP  CONTENTS. 

31.  Best  method  of  polishing  steel,  - 

32.  To  paint  a picture  that  will  appear  and  disappear 

occasionally;  - 

33.  Landscape  painting  on  wails  of  rooms, 

34.  To  paint  in  figures  for  carpets  or  borders,  - 

35.  To  paint  in  imitation  of  mahogaay  and  maple, 

36.  The  art  of  painting  on  glass,  - 

37.  To  make  letters  or  flowers  of  blue,  on  polished  steel, 
3B.  To  preserve  the  brightness  of  polished  steel, 

39.  To  give  steel  a temper  to  cut  marble, 

40.  To  wash  iron  or  steel  with  copper,  - 

41.  To  give  iron  the  whiteness  of  silver, 

42.  To  wash  iron  with  tin,  ----- 

43.  To  give  tin  the  whiteness  and  brilliancy  of  silver, 

44.  To  give  tin  a changeable  crystalline  appearance, 

45.  To  make  a gold  coloured  varnish  for  tin, 

46.  To  make  a rose  coloured  varnish  for  tin, 

47.  To  make  shellac  varnish  for  japanning, 

48.  To  make  the  best  copal  varnish, 

49.  To  make  a spirit  varnish  with  gum-copal, 

50.  To  make  elastic  varnish  for  umbrellas  or  hat  cases, 

51.  To  varnish  maps  and  pictures, 

52.  To  make  a print  appear  on  a gold  ground,  . 

53.  Best  method  of  tracing  or  copying  a picture, 

54.  The  construction  and  use  of  a copying  machine, 

55.  To  produce  the  exact  likeness  of  any  object,  in- 

stantly on  paper,  ..... 

56.  Copper-plate  engraving, 

57.  Etching  on  copper  plates,  .... 

58.  Engraving  and  etching  in  mezzo-tinto, 

59  Etching  in  aqua-tinta,  * 

60.  Copper- pi ate  printing,  ..... 

61.  Etching  letters  or  flowers  on  glass, 
tyZ.  To  cut  glass  with  a piece  of  iron, 

63.  To  make  brunswick  blacking  for  picture  glasses, 


25 

26 

27 

29 

30 

31 

32 

33 

34 

35 

35 

36 

37 

33 

33 

39 

39 

40 

40 

41 

42 

42 

43 

44 

45 

47 

50 

52 

53 

54 

56 

57 

58 


TABLE  OP  CONTENTS.  VU 

64.  Best  cerr.ent  for  joining  glass,  ...  58 

65.  Best  cement  for  joining  china  or  crockery,  . . 59 

66.  To  make  a strong  water  proof  glue,  . . 59 

67.  The  art  of  moulding  figures  in  relief,  . . 60 

68.  To  cast  images  in  plaister,  ....  61 

69.  To  produce  embossed  letters,  or  figures  on  marble,  62 

70.  To  soften  stone,  ......  63 

71.  To  change  wood,  apparently,  to  stone,  . 63 

72.  To  render  wood,  cloth,  or  paper,  fire-proof,  . 64 

73 — 76.  To  produce  fire  readily,  ...  64 

•S7.  To  make  gunpowder,  .....  66 

78.  To  make  the  common  fulminating  powder,  . . 66 

79.  To  make  the  mercurial  fulminating  powder,  . 67 

SO.  To  kindle  a fire  under  water,  ...  68 

81.  To  light  a candle  by  application  of  ice,  . . 68 

82  To  form  letters  or  flowers  of  real  flame,  . 69 

83.  To  produce  flame  of  various  colours,  . . 69 

84.  To  make  sky-rockets  and  fire  wheels,  . . 70 

85.  To  produce  detonating  balloons,  ...  73 

86.  To  prepare  a phial  that  will  give  light  in  the  dark,  74 

87.  To  make  a person’s  face  appear  luminous  in  the  dark,  74 

88-  To  freeze  water  in  warm  weather,  . . 74 

89.  To  change  the  colours  of  animals,  . . .76 

90.  To  give  leather  a beautiful  metallic  lustre,  . 76 

91.  An  easy  method  of  extracting  the  essence  of  roses,  76 

92.  To  prepare  various  kinds  of  essences,  . . 76 

93.  To  prepare  soda  water,  ....  77 

94.  95.  To  produce  metallic  trees,  ...  78 

96.  To  tin  copper  by  boiling,  .....  79 

97.  A metal  that  will  melt  in  hot  water,  . . 79 

98.  Illustration  of  calico  printing,  ...  80 

99.  To  prepare  an  imitation  of  gold  bronze  . .81 

100.  To  procure  the  exhilarating  gas,  - 81 

101.  Construction  of  a galvanic  pile  or  battery,  . 82 

102.  Construction  of  the  oxy-hydrogen  blow-pipe,  84 


V1H 


TABLE  OF  CONTENTS 


103.  To  make  a dry  phosphorescent  powder, 

104.  Curious  experiment  of  precipitation, 

105.  To  make  a beatniful  soft  glass  for  jewelry, 

106.  Composition  of  various  kinds  of  glass, 

107.  Composition  of  various  alloys, 

108.  To  produce  various  kinds  of  gas, 

109.  Various  chemical  tests,  . ♦ . . 

110.  Sundry  experiments,  . , 


85 

86 
86 

87 

88 

89 

90 

91 


CURIOUS  ARTS® 


1.  Water-proof  gilding  and  silvering.— 
This  kind  of  gilding,  (by  some  called  gild- 
ing,) being  the  cheapest  and  most  durable,  is 
in  general  use  for  gilding  or  silvering  letters 
on  signs,  labels,  &c.,  and  may  be  performed 
as  follows  : Grind  one  ounce  of  white  lead* 

and  two  ounces  of  litharge,  very  fine  in  a gill 
of  old  linseed  oil,  and  if  convenient  add  nearly 
one-fourth  of  a gill  of  old  copal  varnish  ; ex- 
pose this  to  the  rays  of  the  sun  for  a week  or 
move  in  a broad  open  vessel,  observing,  how- 
ever, to  keep  it  free  from  dust  Then  pour 
off  the  finest  part,  and  dilute  it  with  as  much 
spirits  of  turpentine  as  will  make  it  work  free- 
ly with  a brush,  or  camel  hair  pencil.  (Oil 
that  will  answer  exceedingly  well  for  this 
purpose,  may  sometimes  be  collected  from 
the  top  of  oil  paints  that  have  been  long  stand- 
ing, and  may  be  used  directly,  without  being 
exposed  to  the  sun,  as  directed  above  . ) What- 
ever letters  or  figures  you  would  gild,  must 
be  first  drawn  or  painted  with  this  sizing,  the 
ground  having  been  previously  painted  and 

B 


10 


CURIOUS  ARTS. 


varnished  ; and  when  the  sizing  is  so  dry  as  t© 
be  hard,  but  yet  remains  slightly  adhesive,  or 
sticky,  lay  on  gold  or  silver  leaves  smoothly 
over  the  whole,  pressing  them  down  gently 
with  a soft  ball  of  cotton.  The  most  conve- 
nient manner  of  performing  this,  is  to  lay  the 
leaves  of  gold  or  silver,  first  on  a piece  of 
deer-skin,  or  glove  leather,  and  cut  them  into 
pieces  of  a convenient  size,  by  drawing  a 
smooth  (not  sharps  edged  knife  over  them. 
Then  take  a small  block  of  wood,  of  a triangu- 
lar form,  about  half  an  inch  thick,  and  two 
inches  in  diameter,  and  bind  a strip  of  fine 
flannel  round  the  edges  ; — breathe  on  this,  and 
press  it  gently  on  a piece  of  the  leaf,  which 
by  this  may  be  taken  from  the  leather,  and 
carried  to  any  part  of  sizing  where  it  will 
best  fit,  and  to  which  it  will  readily  adhere  : 
thus  the  sizing  may  be  readily  covered  with 
the  leaf,  very  little  of  which  will  be  wasted. 
Afterwards  the  whole  may  be  brushed  over 
lightly  with  cotton,  or  a soft  brush,  and  the 
superfluous  gold  or  silver  will  be  brushed  off, 
leaving  the  letters  entire.  Note. — It  is  very 
essentia!  that  the  varnish  of  the  ground  should 
be  thoroughly  dry,  that  it  may  not  be  adhesive 
in  the  least  degree,  otherwise  the  leaf  will 
stick  where  it  should  not,  and  materially  in- 
jure the  w7ork>  When  plain  gilding  is  requir- 
ed, for  vanes,  balls,  &c,,  the  leaves  may  be 
applied  to  the  work  directly  from  the  book, 
without  cutting  or  dividing  them. 


CURIOUS  ARTS. 


11 


g.  The  aft  of  burnish  gilding,— Make 
a sizing  by  boiling  the  skins  of  beaver  and 
musk-rats,  (which  may  be  easily  procured  at 
a hat  manufactory  in  water,  til!  it  is  of  suffi- 
cient strength  that  by  cooling  it  will  become  a 
stiff  jelly  ; — strain  the  liquor,  and  give  your 
work  one  coat  of  it,  while  warm,  w ith  a brush. 
When  this  is  dry,  add  a little  fine  whiting  to 
the  sizing,  and  give  the  work  one  coat  of  this  ; 
then  add  as  much  whiting  as  will  work  freely 
under  the  brush,  and  lay  on  five  or  six  coats 
of  this,  allowing  it  to  dry  each  time.  Smooth 
the  work  by  wetting  it,  and  rubbing  it  with 
pummice  stone,  and  afterwards  with  sand- 
paper. Then  take  some  burnish-gold-size, 
(which  is  composed  of  pipe  clay,  plumbago, 
beef  tallow  and  castile  soap,  but  may  be  pro- 
cured ready  made,  and  dilute  it  with  water 
and  the  above  mentioned  sizing,  equal  quan- 
tities, and  give  the  work  three  successive 
coats  of  this  ; — when  the  last  is  dry.  dip  a 
camel  hair  pencil  in  some  rum,  diluted  with 
an  equal  quantity  of  water,  and  with  it  wet  a 
small  part  of  the  work,  and  immediately, 
while  it  is  flowing,  lay  on  a leaf  of  gold,  brush- 
ing it  down  with  a very  soft  camel  hair  brush  ; 
proceed  thus  till  the  whole  is  gilt,  and  let  it 
dry.  Then  rub  over  the  whole,  carefully, 
with  a flint  burnisher,  or  (with  a tooth  of  a 
wolf  or  dog,  being  fixed  in  a convenient  han- 
dle,' and  the  work  will  readily  acquire  a very 
brilliant  polish,  JVbte. — In  order  to  ascertain 


CURIOUS  ARTS* 


n 

when  the  work  is  sufficiently  dry  for  burnish-* 
log.  it  may  be  requisite  to  apply  the  burnisher 
to  different  parts  of  the  work,  occasionally 
while  it  is  drying  If  the  gold  becomes  dis- 
ordered by  the  rubbing,  it  may  be  deemed  not 
dry  enough  ; but  if,  on  the  other  hand,  it  abides 
well  the  rubbing,  but  takes  the  polish  slowly, 
it  is  a proof, of  its  being  too  dry  ; in  which  ease 
it  will  require  much  more  labour,  and  will 
come  short  of  so  fine  a polish  at  last. 

3.  Ornamental  bronze  gilding  - — This 
is  performed  fay  means  of  go  d or  silver,  re- 
duced loan  impalpable  powder,  called  bronze. 
One  method  of  preparing  it,  is  to  levigate  any 
quantity  of  gold  or  silver  leaves  on  a stone, 
with  some  clarified  honey  ; dilute  the  honey 
with  clear  water,  that  the  bronze  may  settle  ; 
pour  off  the  water  and  honey,  and  add  fresh 
water  to  the  bronze,  which,  after  being  thus 
thoroughly  washe  s may  be  dried  on  paper,  and 
is  ready  for  use  Another  method  of  preparing 
the  gold  bronze,  is  to  precipitate  the  gold  from 
its  solution  in  nitro-muriatic  acid  see  5,  by 
adding  sulphate  of  iron  to  the  solution  then 
washing  it  as  directed  above.  But  in  general 
it  will  be  found  much  cheaper  to buv  the  bronze 
ready  prepared  The  ground  for  this  work 
Bin st  he  varnished  with  a mixture  of  copal  var- 
nish with  an  equal  quantity  of  old  linseed  oil  ; 
and  whatever  figures  are  to  be  formed  in 
bronzing,  must  be  represented  by  holes  cut 


CtJRlOUS  ARTS* 


13 


through  pieces  of  paper  Lay  these  patterns 
on  the  work,  when  the  varnish  is  so  dry  as  to 
be  but  slightly  adhesive,  but  not  press  them 
down  any  more  than  is  requisite  to  keep  the 
paper  in  its  place.  Then  take  a piece  of  soft 
glove-leather,  moisten  it  a little  by  breathing 
on  it,  and  dip  it  in  some  dry  bronze,  and  apply  it 
to  the  figures,  beginning  at  the  edges  ;— tap 
the  figure  gently  with  the  leather,  and  the 
bronze  will  stick  to  the  varnish  according  to 
the  pattern.  Thus  any  figure  may  be  pro- 
duced in  a variety  of  shades,  by  applying  the 
bronze  more  freely  to  some  parts  of  the  work 
than  to  others.  If  some  internal  parts  of  the 
figures  require  to  be  more  distinct  than  others, 
they  may  be  wrought  by  their  peculiar  pat- 
terns, or  may  be  edged  with  dark  coloured 
paint.  In  some  work  it  may  be  well  to  extend 
the  varnish  no  farther  than  the  intended  figures, 
in  which  case,  any  projecting  or  branching 
parts  of  the  figures, may  be  drawn  with  a camel 
hair  pencil,  and  the  patterns  may  in  some 
measure  be  dispensed  with.  In  either  case, 
the  work  must  afterwards  have  one  or  more 
coats  of  copal  or  shellac  varnish. 

4 To  PNAMEL  PICTURE  GLASSES  WITH 
gold.- — The  glass  must  first  be  washed  per- 
fectly clean  and  dried  ; then  damp  it  by 
breathing  on  it,  or  wet  it  with  the  tongue,  and 
immediately  lay  on  a leaf  of  gold,  and  brush  it 
down  smooth.  When  this  is  dry,  draw  any  let- 


14 


CURIOUS  ARTSfi 


ters  or  flowers  on  the  gold  with  Brunswick 
blacking,  (see  63)  and  when  dry,  the  superflu* 
©us  gold  may  be  brushed  off  with  cotton,  leav- 
ing the  figures  entire.  Afterward  the  whole 
may  be  covered  With  blacking,  or  painted  in 
any  colour,  while  the  gold  figures  will  appear 
to  advantage  on  the  opposite  side  of  the  glass. 
Note. — This  work  may  be  elegantly  shaded  by 
scratching  through  the  gold  with  a small  steel 
instrument,  having  many  sharp  points,  previous 
to  laying  on  the  blacking.  Oil  paints  of  any 
kind  may  be  substituted  in  the  place  of  the 
blacking,  but  will  not  dry  so  quick, 

5.  To  WASH  IRON  OR  STEEL  WITH  GOLD  

Mix  together  in  a phial,  one  part  of  nitric  acid, 
with  two  parts  of  muriatic  acid,  and  add  as 
much  fme  gold  as  the  acid  will  dissolve  For 
this  purpose  gold  leaf  is  the  most  convenient, 
as  it  will  be  the  most  readily  dissolved.  (This 
solution  is  called  the  nitro-muriate  of  gold  ) 
Pour  over  this  solution,  cautiously,  about  half 
as  much  sulphuric  ether  shake  the  mix- 
ture, and  then  allow  it  to  settle.  The  ether 
will  take  the  gold  from  the  acid,  and  will 
separate  itself  from  it  asso,  and  form  an  up- 
per stratum  in  the  phial.  Carefullv  pour  off 
this  auriferous  ether  into  another  phial,  and 
cork  it  dose.  Wash  any  piece  of  steel  or 
Iron  with  this  ether,  and  immediately  plunge 
it  in  cold  water,  and  it  will  have  acquired  a 
coat  of  pure  gold.  With  this  also,  any  flow- 


CURIOUS  ARTS* 


15 


<&f$  or  letters  may  be  drawn  or  written,  even 
with  a pen,  and  will  appear  perfectly  gilt. 
The  steel  or  iron  should  afterward  be  heated 
as  much  as  it  will  bear  without  changing 
colour,  and  if  the  steel  be  previously  polished, 
the  beauty  of  the  gilding  may  be  much  in- 
creased by  burnishing  with  a cornelian  or 
blood  stone. 

6.  To  WASH  BRASS  OR  COPPER  WITH  SIL- 
VER. —To  half  an  ounce  of  nitric  acid  in  a 
phial,  add  one  ounce  of  water,  and  one-fourth 
of  an  ounce  of  good  silver,  ft  will  soon  be  dis- 
solved, and  if  the  acid  and  metal  are  both 
pure,  the  solution,  (which  is  called  nitrate  of 
silver  will  be  transparent  and  colourless. 
Add  to  this  a solution  of  one  drachm  of  muriate 
of  soda,  in  any  quantity  of  water  ; this  will 
precipitate  the  silver  in  a white  opaque  mass. 
Pour  off  the  water  with  the  acid,  and  add  to 
the  silver  an  equal  quantity  of  super-tartrate 
of  potass,  thus  forming  a soft  paste  dip  a 
piece  of  soft  leather  in  this  paste,  and  rub  it 
on  the  metal  to  be  silvered  continue  rub- 
bing it  till  it  is  nearly  dry  : then  wash  it  with 
water,  and  polish  by  rubbing  it  bard  with  a 
piece  of  dry  leather.  Another  method  is,  to 
add  sub-carbonate  of  potass  to  the  nitrate  of 
silver,  as  long;  as  ebullition  ensues  ; then  the 
acid  is  poured  off,  and  the  precipitate,  (which 
is  w hite  at  first,  but  becomes  green  when  dry,) 
is  mixed  with  double  its  quantity  of  muriate 


16 


CURIOUS  ARTS. 


of  soda,  and  super-tartrate  of  potass.  With 
this  composition,  being  moistened,  the  metal 
is  rubbed  over,  &c. 

7.  To  GIVE  WOOD  A GOLD,  SILVER,  OR  COP- 
per  lustre. — Grind  about  two  ounces  of 
white  beach  sand  in  a gill  of  water,  in  which 
half  an  ounce  of  gum-arabic  has  been  dissolv- 
ed, and  brush  over  the  work  with  it.  When 
this  is  dry,  the  work  may  be  rubbed  over  with 
a piece  of  gold,  silver  or  copper,  and  will  in 
a measure,  assume  their  respective  colours 
and  brilliancy.  This  work  may  be  polished 
with  a flint  burnisher,  but  should  not  be  var- 
nished. 

8 To  PRINT  GOLD  LETTERS  ON  MOROCCO  

First  wet  the  morocco  with  the  whites  of 
eggs  ; when  this  is  dry,  rub  the  work  over 
with  a little  olive  oil,  and  lay  on  gold  leaves. 
Then  take  some  common  printing  types,  and 
heat  them  to  the  temperature  of  boiling  wa- 
ter, and  impress  the  letters  on  the  gold  ; rub 
the  whole  with  a piece  of  flannel,  and  the 
superfluous  gold  will  come  off,  leaving  the 
letters  handsomely  gilt.  Another  method  is, 
to  strew  powdered  rosin  over  the  morocco 
previous  to  laying  on  the  leaf  ; the  heat  of  the 
types  melts  the  rosin,  which  occasions  the 
gold  to  adhere  in  the  impressions,  while  the 
other  may  be  brushed  off. 


CURIOUS  ARTS. 


17 


To  DYE  SILK  A BRILLIANT  GOLD  COL- 
OUR.— To  one  gill  of  water  in  a common  glass 
flask,  add  one  ounce  of  granulated  zinc,  and 
one-fourth  of  an  ounce  of  sulphuric  acid. 
Hydrogen  gas  will  be  evolved  from  the  water, 
and  rise  through  the  neck  of  the  flask,  which 
must  not  be  stopped.  Take  a piece  of  white 
silk  and  immerse  it  in  some  nitre-muriate  of 
gold,  (see  5)  which  has  been  diluted  with  three 
parts  of  water  to  one  of  acid  ; and  immediate- 
ly, while  the  silk  is  wTet,  expose  it  to  the 
current  of  gas,  as  it  rises  from  the  flask  ; the 
gold  will  soon  be  revived,  and  the  silk  will 
become  beautifully  and  permanently  gilt.  Any 
letters  or  flowers  may  be  drawn  on  the  silk, 
writh  a camel  hair  pencil  dipped  in  the  solu- 
tion, and  on  being  exposed  to  the  action  of 
the  gas,  will  be  revived,  and  shine  with  me- 
tallic brilliancy  Note. — The  silk  must  be 
kept  moist  with  water,  till  the  gold  is  reviv- 
ed, Zinc  may  be  prepared  for  the  above 
purpose,  by  melting  it,  and  stirring  it  con- 
tinually with  a stick  or  iron  rod  while  it  is 
cooling,  or  by  pouring  it  into  cold  water. 

10.  To  DYE  SILK  A BRILLIANT  SILVER 
colour.- — Proceed  as  directed  in  the  last  ex- 
periment, only  use  tne  nitrate  of  silver,  (see 
6,  instead  of  nitro-muriate  of  gold.  If  a jar 
or  box  be  filled  with  hydrogen  gas,  and  the 
silk  suspended  in  it,  the  action  of  the  gas,  and 
consequently  the  revivification  of  the  metal 


18 


CURIOUS  ARTS. 


will  be  more  uniform.  For  small  figures, 
however,  it  may  be  as  well  to  fix  a stopper  in 
the  flask,  having  a small  orifice  through  it, 
that  the  gas  may  be  thrown  with  some  force 
on  the  silk,  and  will  thus  have  a more  certain 
effect. 

11.  To  SILVER  LOOKING  GLASSES.— Lay 
on  a smooth  board,  a piece  of  soft  deer-skin 
leather,  rather  larger  than  the  glass  that  is  to 
be  silvered  ; and  on  the  leather,  having  sprink- 
led a little  fine  whiting,  spread  a piece  of  tin 
foil  of  the  same  size  Pour  on  a few  drops  of 
mercury,  and  brush  it  over  the  tin  with  a 
smooth  brush,  till  every  part  of  the  tin  be- 
comes bright.  Then  add  as  much  mercury  as 
will  lay  on  the  tin,  and  upon  this  lay  the  glass 
to  be  silvered  : on  the  glass  lav  another  piece 
of  leather,  of  the  same  size,  and  on  that  an- 
other board — Take  up  the  hoards  with  the 
glass,  and  pressing  the  boards  together,  turn 
them  with  the  glass,  the  other  side  up  ; take 
off  the  upper  board,  and  pass  the  glass  w ith 
the  tin  and  leather,  between  two  rollers,  sim- 
ilar to  those  of  a rolling  press,  for  copper- 
plate printing  ; thus  to  press  out  the  mercury 
from  between  the  tin  and  the  glass  Then 
place  the  glass  between  the  boards  again  as 
before  and  place  a heavy  wreight  (which  can- 
not be  too  heavy  unless  it  breaks  the  glass)  on 
the  upper  board,  which  must  remain  twro  or 
three  days.  The  glass  may  then  be  taken  up. 


CURIOUS  ARTS# 


19 


The  practice  of  some  is,  to  lay  thin  paper  on 
the  mercury  previous  to  laying  on  the  glass  ; 
this  paper,  being  carefully  drawn  out,  after 
the  glass  is  laid  on,  serves  to  remove  the  su- 
perfluous mercury,  that  the  tin  may  come 
more  nearly  in  contact  with  the  glass.  In  this 
case,  no  rollers  are  used  Concave  or  other 
fancy  glasses  may  be  silvered,  by  making  an 
impression  with  the  glass,  in  a kind  of  putty, 
made  of  fine  sulphate  of  lime  and  water  ; and 
placing  the  glass  in  the  impression  again  with 
the  tin  foil  and  mercury,  when  the  plaster  is 
dry,  and  subjecting  it  to  pressure  two  or  three 
days  in  that  situation  The  experiment  of  sil- 
vering glass  may  be  performed  by  rubbing  a 
drop  of  mercury  on  a small  piece  of  tin  foil, 
and  pressing  it  upon  apiece  of  glass  with  the 
finger,  ora  piece  of  soft  leather  In  this  case, 
the  glass  will  have  acquired  the  reflective 
property  of  a mirror  ; and  if  a similar  pressure 
be  continued  a few  hours,  the  tin  will  adhere 
permanently. 

12.  To  WRITE  ON  PAPER  WITH  GOLD  OR 
silver  —Make  a sizing  as  strong  as  will  .flow 
freely  from  the  pen,  by  dissolving  equal  quan- 
tities of  gum  arafaic  and  loaf  sugar  in  w ater  ; 
write  with  this  on  paper  and  let  it  dry  ; then 
moisten  the  paper  by  breathing  on  it,  or  by 
holding  it  over  hot  water,  and  immediately  lay 
pieces  of  gold  or  silver  leaf  on  the  lines  of 
the  writing,  pressing  them  down  gently  with 


20 


CURIOGS  ARTS. 


a dry  hair  pencil.  Otherwise,  brush  gold  or. 
silver  bronze  lightly  over  the  writing  ; but 
this  will  not  have  so  brilliant  an  appearance. 
Allow  the  sizing  to  dry  again,  and  then  brush 
off  the  redundant  gold  or  silver  with  cotton. 
This  writing,  if  performed  with  leaf  gold  or 
silver;  may  be  burnished  with  a flint  burnisher 
or  a cornelian  or  blood-stone.  Gold  letters 
may  also  be  written  or  drawn  with  a hair  pen- 
cil by  means  of  gold  bronze,  mixed  with  weak 
gum  water,  to  which  may  be  added  a little 
solution  of  soap,  which  will  make  it  run  more 
freely.  But  no  preparation  of  solution  of  gold 
has  yet  been  discovered,  which  may  be  easily 
revived  on  paper. 

13.  To  MAKE  GOOD  SHINING  BLACK  INK.— 
Take  two  ounces  of  nut-galls  in  coarse  pow- 
der ; one  ounce  of  logwood  in  thin  chips  ; one 
ounce  of  sulphate  of  iron  ; three  fourths  of 
an  ounce  of  gum-arabic  ; one  fourth  of  an 
ounce  of  sulphate  of  copper  ; and  one  fourth 
of  an  ounce  of  loaf  sugar.  Boil  the  galls  and 
logwood  together  in  three  pints  of  water,  till 
the  quantity  is  reduced  to  one  half  Then 
the  liquor  must  be  strained  through  a flannel 
into  a proper  vessel,  and  the  remainder  of  the* 
ingredients  be  added  to  it  The  mixture  is 
then  to  be  frequently  stirred  till  the  whole  is 
dissolved  ; after  which  it  must  be  left  at  rest 
for  twenty -four  hours.  The  ink  may  then  be 
decanted  from  the  gross  sediment,  and  must 
be  preserved  in  a glass  bottle  well  corked. 


CURIOUS  ARTS. 


2! 


14.  Blue  ink. — Dissolve  one  ounce  of 
gum  arabic  in  a pint  of  water.  In  a part  of 
this  gum  water,  grind  a small  quantity  of  best 
Prussian  blue  ; you  may  thus  bring  it  to  any 
depth  of  colour  you  choose. 

15.  Red  ink,— In  the  above  mentioned 
gum  water,  grind  very  fine  three  parts  of  Ver- 
million with  one  of  lake  or  carmine.  This  is 
a very  perfect  colour,  but  may  require  to  he 
shaken  up  occasionally. 

16.  Yellow  ink.— Steep  one  ounce  of 
turmeric,  in  powder,  in  a gill  of  good  rum  or 
gin  which  is  not  coloured  ; Jet  it  rest  twenty- 
four  hours  ; then  throw  it  on  a cloth,  and  ex- 
press the  coloured  liquor,  which  mix  with 
gum  water. 

17.  Green  ink. — To  the  tincture  of  tur- 
meric, prepared  as  above,  add  a little  Prus- 
sian blue.  A variety  of  tints  may  be  formed, 
by  varying  the  proportions  of  these  two  ingre- 
dients, and  no  artificial  colour  can  excel  it  in 
beauty. 

18.  Purple  ink. — Grind  some  drop-lake  in 
Water  ; otherwise,  take  some  small  slices  of 
a beet,  of  the  deepest  colour  ; bruise  them  a 
little,  and  moisten  them  with  spirits,  and  ex- 
press the  juice  through  a cloth  To  either  of 
these,  add  a little  blue  and  gum  water, 

c 


,22 


CURIOUS  ARTS. 


19.  To  WRITE  IN  VARIOUS  COLOURS  WITH 
THE  SAME  PEN,  INK  AND  PAPER.  -Take  a 

sheet  of  white  paper,  and  wet  some  parts  of 
it  with  a solution  of  sub-carbonate  of  potass, 
which  must  be  diluted  with  water  so  as  not  to 
appear  on  the  paper  when  dry.  Wet  some 
other  parts  with  diluted  muriatic  acid,  or 
with  juice  of  leino  is.  Some  other  parts  may 
be  wet  with  a dilute  solution  of  sulpha  e of 
iron  ; and  others  with  an  infusion  of  nut-galls, 
(water  in  which  bruised,  or  pulverized  nut- 
galls  have  been  steeped  None  of  these 
preparations  must  be  so  strong  as  to  colour  the 
paper  any.  When  these  are  dry,  take  some 
finely  powdered  sulphate  of  iron,  that  has  be- 
come white  by  exposure  to  the  air,  or  sun, 
and  rub  it  lightly  on  some  parts  of  the  paper 
that  have  been  wet  with  the  sub-carbonate  of 
potass,  and  infusion  of  galls  Then,  with  the 
juice  of  vio'ets,  or  the  leaves  of  red  cabbage, 
write  on  the  paper,  as  usual  with  a pen.  The 
ink  is,  of  itself,  a faint  purple  ; where  the  pa- 
per was  wet  with  acid,  the  writing  will  be 
bright  red  ; on  the  alkali,  it  will  take  a beau- 
tiful green  ; on  the  sulphate  of  iron,  it  will  be 
blue  ; on  the  alkali  that  was  rubbed  with 
powdered  sulphate  of  iron,  it  will  be  a deep 
yellow  ; and  on  the  infusion  of  galls,  that  was 
rubbed  with  the  pwvder,  it  will  be  black. 
The  juice  of  violets  will  sometimes  take  a 
brlliant  yellow  on  the  alkali,  if  it  be  very 
strong.  The  leaves  of  red  cabbage  may  b% 


CURIOUS  ARTS* 


dried  by  the  fire,  and  thus  may  be  kept  ready 
for  use  : and  it  is  only  requisite  to  steep  them 
in  hot  water,  in  order  to  prepare  the  ink  at 
any  time.  Note. — The  yellow  ink,  described 
at  16,  writes  a full’  red,  where  the  paper  has 
been  wet  with  a solution  of  sub-carbonate  of 
potass  ; while  the  solution  of  sulphate  of  iron* 
which  has  no  colour  of  itself,  writes  a deep 
yellow  on  the  alkali,  and  black  on  the  infusion 
of  galls. 

20.  Invisible  ink  fo  i secret  corrfs- 
fo'vd'-nc.  . — Dissolve  muriate  of  ammonia  in 
water,  and  write  ; — the  writing  will  be  invisi- 
ble. When  you  would  make  the  writing  ap- 
pear. heat  the  paper  by  the  fire,  and  the  writ- 
ing will  become  black. 

21.  Sympathetic  inks. — Process  1 — 
Write  with  a solution  of  sulphate  of  iron— the 
writing  will  be  invisible.  Dip  a feather  in  an 
infusion  of  nut-galls,  and  with  it  wet  the  paper, 
and  the  writing  will  become  black. 

22.  Process  2. — Write  with  a dilute  infu- 
sion of  galls,  - it  will  be  invisible  Dip  a 
feather  in  a solution  of  sulphate  of  iron,  and 
moisten  the  paper  with  it  and  the  writing  will 
become  black. 

23.  Process  3. —Write  with  a solution  of 
sub-carbonate  of  potass  ; wet  this  writing 


n 


CURIOUS  ARTS# 


with  a solution  of  sulphate  of  iron,— it  will 
take  a deep  yellow  colour. 

24.  Process  4.— Write  with  a solution  of 
sulphate  of  copper, — no  writing:  will  be  visi- 
ble Wash  the  paper  with  a solution  of  prus- 
siate  of  potass, — the  writing  will  then  get  a 
reddish  brown  colour. 

25.  Process  5 — -Write  with  a solution  of 
super-carbonate  of  soda  ; moisten  the  paper 
with  solution  of  sulphate  of  copper — the  writ- 
ing will  become  green. 

26.  Process  6. — Write  with  diluted  nitrate 
of  silver,  and  let  the  writing  dry  in  the  dark — - 
it  will  be  invisible  ; but  expose  the  paper  to 
the  rays  of  the  sun,  and  the  writing  will  be* 
come  black. 

27.  Luminous  ink  that  will  shine  in 
the  dark  — To  half  an  ounce  of  sulphuric 
ether,  in  a phial,  add  one  drachm  of  phospho- 
rus ; cork  the  phial  close  and  let  it  remain 
two  or  three  weeks,  often  shaking  it.  After- 
wards any  words  may  be  written  with  it  on 
dark  coloured  paper,  ahd  if  carried  into  a 
dark  room,  will  appear  very  bright. 

28.  To  MAKE  A WRITING  APPEAR  AND  DIS- 
APPEAR at  pleasure. — Dissolve  equal  parts 
of  sulphate  of  copper  and  muriate  of  ammonia 
in  water,  and  write.  When  you  would  make 
the  writing  appear,  warm  the  paper  gently  by 


CURIOUS  ART'S. 


25 


the  fire  ; the  writing  will  appear  in  a yellow 
colour  ; but  as  soon  as  you  take  the  paper  in- 
to ihe  cold  air,  the  writing  will  vanish.  This 
may  be  often  repeated. 

29.  To  MAKE  A WRITING  VANISH  AND  AN- 
OTHER appear  in  its  place — Write  on  pa- 
per with  a solution  of  sub-carbonate  of  potass, 
—the  writing  will  be  invisible.  Mix  together 
equal  parts  of  solution  of  sulphate  of  iron,  and 
infusion  of  galls  ; write  with  this  mixture 
(which  is  black  on  the  same  paper.  Then 
add  to  the  black  liquor  a little  sulphuric  acid, 
sufficient  to  deprive  it  of  colour.  Wet  the 
paper  with  this  compound  ; the  acid  will  dis- 
charge the  colour  from  the  last  writing,  while 
the  alkali  of  the  first,  will  precipitate  the  gal- 
late  of  iron,  and  the  writing  will  become 
black. 

30  To  restore  old  writing  that  is 

NEARLY  DEFACED.  — Boil  OHC  OUOCe  of  pOW” 
dered  nut-galls,  for  an  hour  or  more  in  a pint 
of  white  wine  ; filter  the  liquor,  and  when 
cold,  wet  the  paper  with  it,  or  pass  it  on  the 
lines  with  a camel  hair  pencil,  and  the  writ- 
iug  will  be  much  revived. 

31.  Best  method  of  polishing  steel  — 
For  this  purpose  a wheel  must  be  provided 
that  is  perfectly  round,  and  the  rim  of  it  cov- 
ered with  deer-skin,  or  buff-leather.  The  di- 
ameter of  the  wheel*  for  common  purposes 


CURIOUS  ARTS* 


m 

may  be  about  two  feet ; but  for  polishing  ra- 
zors, and  some  other  similar  instruments,  the 
wheel  should  not  be  more  than  five  or  six  in- 
ches in  diameter,  and  two  inches  thick.  The 
steel  must  first  be  ground  smooth  as  possible 
on  a common,  or  fine  grained  stone  ; it  may 
then  be  applied  to  the  polishing  wheel,  which 
must  be  turned  with  such  velocity  that  the 
surface,  or  rim,  may  move  at  the  rate  of  from 
forty  to  sixty  feet  in  a second  ; and  the  leather 
must  frequently  have  a powder  applied,  call- 
ed crocus  of  iron,  which  is  prepared  by  cal- 
cining sulphate  of  iron,  in  a crucible  till  it  be- 
comes a fine  red  oxide  resembling  rust.  For 
ordinary  work,  the  leather  may  be  moistened 
with  olive  oil,  that  it  may  the  better  retain 
the  powder  ; but  it  will  give  a more  perfect 
polish  if  kept  dry.  If  any  perfectly  plain  sur- 
faces, such  as  mirrors  are  to  be  polished,  they 
must  be  applied  to  the  sides  of  a wheel,  and 
not  to  the  edge  or  rim,  in  the  manner  of  other 
work. 

32 . To  PAINT  A PICTURE  THAT  WILL  AP- 
PEAR AND  DISAPPEAR  OCCASIONALLY. To  half 

an  ounce  of  nitric  acid, add  one  drachm  of  cobalt, 
one  drachm  of  muriate  of  soda,  and  two  oun- 
ces of  water  ; set  it  in  a sand  bath  or  on  warm 
ashes,  where  it  must  remain  five  or  six  hours. 
Then  filter  the  solution,  (which  is  nitro-mu- 
riate  of  cobalt, ^ and  with  it  draw  the  trees, 
and  shrubbery  of  a designed  picture.  Then 


CURIOUS  ARTS* 


m 

with  a solution  of  oxide  of  cobalt  in  nitric  acid, 
draw  some  distant  mountains,  fences,  &c.  and 
with  muriate  of  copper,  (the  compound  solu- 
tion described  at  28,)  draw  some  flowers, 
buildings,  &c<.  These  will  all  be  invisible  when 
dry  ; but  warm  the  paper  and  the  picture 
will  appear  in  green,  blue  and  yellow  It 
will  disappear  again  when  the  paper  becomes 
cold. 

33.  Landscape  painting  on  walls  op 
rooms. — -Dissolve  half  a pound  of  glue  in  a 
gallon  of  water, and  with  this  sizing  mix  what- 
ever colours  may  be  required  for  the  work. 
Strike  a line  round  the  room,  nearly  breast 
high  ; this  is  called  the  horizon  line  : paint 
the  walls  from  the  top  to  w ithin  six  inches  of 
the  horizon  line,  with  sky  blue,  (composed  of 
refined  whiting  and  indigo,  or  slip  blue,)  and 
at  the  same  time, paint  the  space  from  the  ho- 
rizon line  to  the  blue,  with  horizon  red, 
(whiting,  coloured  a little  with  orange  lead 
and  yellowT  ochre,)  and  while  the  tw  o colours 
are  wet,  incorporate  them  partially,  with  a 
brush.  Rising  clouds  may  be  represented  by 
striking  the  horizon  red  colour  upon  the  blue, 
before  it  is  dry,  writh  a large  brush.  Change 
some  sky  blue  about  twTo  shades  with  slip  blue 
and  paint  your  design  for  rivers,  lakes  or  the 
ocean.  Change  some  sky  blue  one  shade 
with  forest  green,  (slip  blue  and  chrome  yel- 
low,) and  paint  the  most  distant  mountains  and 


CURIOUS  ARTS. 


highlands  ; shade  them  while  wet,  with  blue, 
and  heighten  them  with  white,  observing  al- 
ways to  heighten  the  side  that  is  towards  the 
principal  light  of  the  room.  The  upper  sur- 
face of  the  ocean  must  be  painted  as  high  as 
the  horizon  line,  and  the  distant  highlands  must 
rise  from  ten  to  twenty  inches  above  it  — 
Paint  the  highlands,  islands,  &c.  of  the  second 
distance,  which  should  appear  from  four  to  six 
miles  distant,  with  mountain  green,  (two  parts 
sky  blue  with  one  of  forest  green,)  heighten 
them,  while  wet,  with  suipher  yellow,  ^three 
parts  whiting  with  one  of  chrome  yellow,;  and 
shade  with  blue-black,  (slip  blue  and  lamp 
black  equal.)  Paint  the  lands  of  the  first  dis- 
tance, such  as  should  appear  within  a mile  or 
two,  with  forest  green  ; heighten  with  chiome 
yellow  and  shade  with  black  ; occasionally  in- 
corporating red  ochre,  french  green  or  whiting. 
The  nearest  part,  or  fore  ground,  however, 
should  be  painted  very  bold  with  yellow  ochre, 
stone  brown,  (red  and  yellow  ochres  and  lamp 
black  equal,)  and  black.  Paint  the  shores 
and  rocks  of  the  first  distance  with  stone 
brown  ; heighten  with  horizon  red, — shade 
with  black  For  those  of  the  second  distance, 
each  colour  must  be  mixed  with  skv  blue. — 
The  wood  lands,  hedges  and  trees  of  the  sec- 
ond distance  are  formed  by  striking  a small 
flat  stiff  brush  endwise,  (which  operation  is 
called  bushing,  and  is  applied  to  the  heighten- 
ing and  shading  all  trees  and  shrubbery  of  any 


CURIOUS  ARTS, 


28 

distance,)  with  mountain  green,  deepened  a 
little  with  slip  blue  ; with  which  also  the 
ground  work  for  trees  of  the  first  distance  is- 
painted  ; and  with  this  colour  the  water  may 
be  shaded  a little  under  the  capes  and  islands, 
thus  representing  the  reflection  of  the  land  in 
the  water.  Trees  of  the  first  distance  are 
heightened  with  sulphur  yellow  or  french 
green  ; and  shaded  with  blue-black.  Every 
object  must  be  painted  larger  or  smaller,  ac- 
cording to  the  distance  at  which  it  is  repre- 
sented ; thus,  the  proper  height  of  trees  in 
the  second  distance,  is  from  one  to  two  inches, 
and  other  objects  in  proportion.  Those  in  the 
first  distance  from  six  to  ten  inches  generally  ; 
but  those  in  the  fore  ground,  which  are  near- 
est, are  frequently  painted  as  large  as  the 
walls  will  admit.  The  colours  also  for  dis- 
tant objects,  houses,  ships,  &c  , must  be  vari- 
ed, being  mixed  with  more  or  less  sky  blue, 
according  to  the  distance  of  the  object.  By 
these  means  the  view  will  apparently  recede 
from  the  eye,  and  will  have  a very  striking  ef- 
fect. 

34.  To  PAINT  IN  FIGURES  FOR  CARPETS 
or  borders. — Take  a sheet  of  parte  board 
or  strong  paper,  and  paint  thereon  with  a pen- 
cil, any  flower  or  figure  (hat  would  be  elegant 
for  a border  or  carpet  figure  ; then  with  small 
gouges  and  chissels,  or  a sharp  pen  knife,  cut 
out  the  figure  completely,  that  it  be  repre- 


so 


CURIO m ARTS. 


seated  by  apertures  cut  through  the  paper. 
Lay  this  pattern  on  the  ground  intended  to  re- 
ceive the  figure,  whether  a floor  cr  painted 
cloth,  and  w ith  a stiff  smooth  brush,  paint  with 
a quick  vibrative  motion  over  the  whole  figure. 
— Then  take  up  the  paper  and  you  will  hare 
the  entire  figure  on  the  ground.  Note. — if  a 
floor  is  to  be  thus  painted,  in  imitation  of  a 
carpet,  the  pattern  must  be  perfectly  square, 
and  the  figure  so  designed,  that  when  several 
of  them  come  together,  they  may  completely 
match  each  other  ; and  when  different  colours 
are  used  in  the  same  figure,  they  must  be 
kept  a little  separate  from  each  other,  and 
wrought  with  different  brushes. 

35.  To  PAINT  IN  IMITATION  OF  MAHOGANY 
and  maple. — First  give  the  work  one  or  two 
coats  of  straw  coloured  paint,  composed  of 
white  lead  and  yellow  ochre,  ground  in  linseed 
oil,  to  which  may  be  added  a little  fine  lith- 
arge, that  the  paint  may  the  sooner  dry  ; when 
this  is  dry,  rub  it  smooth  with  sand-paper. 
Then  if  mahogany  is  to  be  imitated,  stain  the 
work  over  with  boiled  linseed  of,  coloured 
a little  with  Venetian  red,  and  burnt  terra-de- 
sienna,  equal  quantities.  This  should  be  ap- 
plied with  a short  stiff  brush,  and  spread  very 
thin  that  it  may  not  run,  or  drip  off.  Then 
with  terra-de-sienna  ground  very  thick  in 
oil,  form  the  dark  shades  of  the  graining  ac- 
cording to  your  design,  with  a small  flat  brush. 


CURIOUS  ARTS. 


31 


For  this  purpose  a common  sash-brush  nicy  fce 
■made  flat,  by  having  a small  piece  of  wire,  or 
wood,  bound  on  each  side,  near  the  handle. 
Some  of  the  darker  shades  may  be  drawn  with 
burnt  umber  and  black, ground  together,  which 
may  be  applied  with  a camel  hair  pencil  If 
any  part  is  to  be  made  very  light,  the  staining 
may  be  wiped  off  carefully  with  a ball  of  cot- 
ton. Light  stripes,  or  lines  may  be  produced 
by  drawing  a piece  of  cork  or  soft  wood  over 
the  work,  thus  taking  off  or  removing  the 
dark  colours,  that  the  original  ground  may  ap- 
pear —To  imitate  maple,  the  work  must  be 
stained  with  yellow  ochre,  and  burnt  u nber, 
ground  together  in  boiled  oil.  Instead  of  burnt 
umber  terra-de-sienna  unburnt  is  sometimes 
used,  but  as  different  kinds,  or  parcels  of  it, 
vary  in  colour,  from  yellow  to  brown,  it  may 
not  be  depended  on  uniformly.  The  birds9 
eyes  and  curls  are  formed  by  removing  the 
staining  from  the  ground  with  a piece  of  stiff 
leather,  the  ed  es  of  which  are  cut  in  notches 
so  (hat  several  points  will  touch  the  work  at 
the  same  time. 

38  The  art  of  painting  on  glass. — If 
the  common  cakes  of  water-colours  are  to  be 
u i this  work,  they  should  be  mixed  with 
water  in  which  a little  muriate  of  soda  has 
been  dissolved  Other  paints  may  be  ground 
in  shellac  varnish  ; or  in  linseed  oil.  but  this 
will  not  dry  so  quick.  The  most  proper  col- 


32 


CURIOUS  ARTS. 


ours  for  ibis  work,  on  account  of  their  trans- 
parency, are  india  ink,  or  lamp  black,  burnt 
umber,  burnt  terra-de-sienna,  lake  and  gam- 
boge or  chrome  yellow.  These  must  be  laid 
on  very  thin,  that  they  may  be  the  more  trans- 
parent. Set  up  the  glass  on  its  edge,  against 
a window,  or  place  a lamp  on  the  opposite 
side  that  the  light  may  shine  through,  and  with 
a fine  hair  pencil,  draw  the  out  lines  of  your 
design  on  the  glass  with  black  ; afterward 
shade  and  paint  it  with  the  above  mentioned 
colours,  observing  to  paint  that  part  of  the 
work  first,  which  in  other  painting  would  be 
done  last.  The  shading  may  be  performed 
by  laying  on  two  or  more  coats  of  the  colour, 
where  you  want  it  darker.  If  transparency  is 
not  requ;red,  a greater  variety  of  colours  may 
be  used,  and  laid  on  in  full  heavy  coats.  Any 
writing  or  lettering  in  this  work,  must  be  writ- 
ten from  right  to  left  contrary  to  the  usual  or- 
der In  some  pieces,  the  body  of  some  of  the 
principal  objects,  may  be  left  blank,  so  that 
by  placing  pieces  of  silk  or  paper  of  different 
colours,  on  the  opposite  side  of  the  glass  the 
picture  will  also  appear  in  different  colours, 
and  may  be  changed  from  one  colour  to  anoth- 
er at  pleasure. 

37,  To  MAKE  LETTERS  OR  FLOWERS  OF 
blue,  on  polished  steel. — Hold  the  steel 
over  a charcoal  fire  till  it  becomes  blue  ; — let 
it  cool.  Then  with  equal  parts  of  rosin  and 


CURIOUS  ARTS* 


33 


bees  wax,  melted  together,  coloured  a little 
with  lamp  black,  and  diluted  with  spirits  of 
turpentine,  so  as  to  work  freely  with  a camel 
hair  pencil,  draw  any  letters  or  figures  on  the 
steel,  while  it  is  a little  warm*  When  the 
steel  has  become  cold,  wash  it  over  with  mu- 
riatic acid,  diluted  with  two  parts  water,  to 
one  of  acid  ; thus  takeoff  the  blue  colour, 
and  then  wash  it  with  clear  water.  After- 
ward  the  varnish,  being  warmed  a little,  may 
be  readily  washed  off  with  spirits  of  turpen- 
tine, and  the  letters  or  flowers  will  remain 
blue.  Note.— If  letters  are  formed  on  pol- 
ished steel  with  this  varnish,  and  the  body 
of  the  metal  be  also  covered  with  it,  except 
a small  space  round  the  letters,  and  then 
bathed  with  muriatic  acid,  the  space  round 
the  letters  will  become  a dull  iron  colour, 
while  the  letters,  and  the  body  of  the  steel 
will  retain  their  polished  surface  and  brilliancy, 

38.  To  PRESERVE  THE  BRIGHTNESS  OF 
polished  steel. — Grind  an  ounce  of  native 
plumbago,  (such  as  is  used  for  making  lead 
pencils,)  very  fine  in  a gill  of  spirits  of  tur- 
pentine ; then  add  an  ounce  of  clean  bees 
wax  ; apply  a gentle  heat,  till  the  wax  is 
melted,  and  continue  stirring  it  till  it.  is  near- 
ly cold.  Brush  over  the  steel  with  this  com- 
position, and  when  the  spirits  have  evapora- 
ted, rub  the  work  hard  with  a piece  of  glove 
leather,  and  wipe  off  nearly  all  the  wax,  that 

D 


34 


CURIOUS  ARTS. 


the  metal  may  retain  its  brightness.  This 
may  be  applied  to  iron  or  steel  in  machinery , 
or  other  work,  and  will  be  found  to  answer  a 
much  better  purpose  than  oi!,  as  it  is  less  lia- 
ble to  collect  dust  from  the  atmosphere,  and 
is,  in  general,  much  more  durable. 

39.  T ) GIVE  STEEL  A TEMPER  TO  CUT  MAR- 
ble.  — No  temper  can  be  given  to  steel,  in 
which  hardness  is  combined  with  tenacity, 
more  than  in  that  given  to  files,  at  the  file 
manufactories,  which  is  accomplished  by  the 
following  process  —To  boiling  water,  add 
about  twice  as  much  finely  ground  muriate  of 
soda,  as  the  water  will  dissolve,  and  as  much 
rye  flour  as  will,  with  the  other,  make  a 
thick  paste  ; lay  a coat  of  this  paste  over  the 
steel,  (which  must  be  ground,  or  filed  previ- 
ous to  tempering,)  and  subject  it  to  a full 
red  heat,  in  a fire  of  charcoal,  mixed  with 
about  a third  part  of  animal  coal,  (coal  of 
bones,  horns,  leather,  &c.,)  and  then  sudden- 
ly plunge  it  three  or  four  feet  deep,  in  exceed- 
ing cold  water.  By  thus  immersing  the  steel 
rather  deep  in  the  water,  there  is  a double 
advantage  ; for  the  water  w7hich  becomes 
heated,  by  contact  with  the  steel,  w ill  rise 
and  its  place  be  supplied  continually  by  fresh 
cold  water  ; and  at  the  same  time,  the  pres- 
sure of  the  water  on  the  coating  of  paste, 
will  make  it  adhere  more  closely  to  the  steel 
while  it  is  cooling.  The  paste  may  then  be 


CURTOUS  ARTS. 


35 


swelled  off,  and  the  steel  will  be  found  as 
bright  as  before,  or  at  least,  will  not  have 
been  essentially  oxydized  by  the  operation. 

40.  To  WASH  IRO^OR  STEEL  WITH  COP- 
per. -—Dissolve  sulphate  of  copper  in  water, 
in  the  proportion  of  one  to  three  ; wash  the 
iron  or  steel  with  it,  and  it  will  instantly  be 
covered  with  reduced  copper.  This  is  best 
performed  by  applying  the  solution  with  a 
brush,  which  must  be  followed  directly  with 
a sponge  of  clear  water.  In  this  manner  any 
letters  or  figures  may  be  drawn  With  a camel 
hair  pencil,  or  a pen.  and  if  it  be  on  polished 
steel,  the  letters  or  flowers  will  assume  the 
brilliancy  of  the  steel  and  appear  like  highly 
polished  copper  It  may  sometimes  be  re- 
quisite to  cleanse  the  metal  by  washing  it 
with  diluted  muriatic  acid,  that  the  copper 
may  adhere  the  more  readily.  If  steel  thus 
ornamented,  be  held  over  a charcoal  fire,  the 
copper  figures  become  blue  first  ; and  when 
the  steel  becomes  blue,  the  copper  takes  a 
gold  colour  ; but  is  restored  again  to  its  ori- 
ginal colour,  by  diluted  muriatic  acid. 

41,  To  GIVE  IRON  THE  WHJTENFSS  OF  SIL- 
VER.— To  nitric  acid,  diluted  with  an  equal 
quantity  of  water,  add  as  much  mercury  as 
the  acid  will  dissolve  ; then  add  to  the  solu- 
tion. three  or  four  times  as  much  water,  and 
having  given  the  iron  a coat  of  copper,  as  di« 


36 


CURIOUS  ARTS. 


reeled  in  the  last  experiment,  brush  it  over 
in  the  same  manner  with  the  diluted  nitrate 
of  mercury  ; its  appearance  will  be  equal,  if 
not  superior  to  that  of  real  silver.  In  this 
manner  any  common,  through  iron  work,  may 
be  apparently  silvered,  at  a most  insignificant 
expense. 

42.  To  wash  iron  with  tin.— Small  pieces 
of  iron  may  be  tinned,  after  being  filed  bright, 
by  washing  them  with  a saturated  solution  of 
muriate  of  ammonia  in  water  and  dipping  them, 
while  moist,  in  a vessel  of  melted  ' tin.  If 
the  iron  is  of  such  form  as  cannot  be  conven- 
iently filed,  it  may  be  immersed  in  nitric  acid, 
diluted  with  as  much  water  as  acid  ; when  the 
acid  begins  to  act  sensibly  on  every  part,  it 
may  be  washed  with  water,  and  then  with  the 
muriate  of  ammonia,  and  if  a little  fine  rosin 
be  sprinkled  on  it  previous  to  dipping  it  in  the 
tin,  it  may  be  an  advantage.  The  iron  must 
remain  in  the  tin  till  it  becomes  nearly  as  hot 
as  the  tin,  otherwise  it  will  be  coated  ton 
thick.  Muriatic  acid  may  sometimes  be  used, 
instead  of  muriate  of  ammonia,  and  if  the 
iron  is  not  filed,  it  will  answer  a better  pur- 
pose. The  inside  of  cast  iron  vessels  may  be 
tinned  as  follows  : Cleanse  the  iron  by  scour- 
ing or  rubbing  it  with  a sharp  grained  stone, 
keeping  the  iron  wet  with  diluted  nitric  acid. 
As  the  most  prominent  parts  of  the  iron  will 
be  first  brightened  by  the  stone,  the  acid  will 


CURIOUS  ARTS. 


S'l 


also  commence  its  action  on  the  same  parts, 
which  will  very  much  facilitate  the  work, 
while  the  hollows,  and  deeper  parts  of  the 
surface,  will  remain  untouched  till  the  iron  is 
nearly  smooth.  When  this  is  accomplished, 
wash  the  iron  with  water,  and  then  with  clear 
muriatic  acid  ; turn  the  vessel  over  to  drain 
off  the  superfluous  acid  ; then  set  it  upright, 
and  fill  it  with  melted  tin,  which  must  he 
poured  in  cautiously,  directly  on  the  bottom 
of  the  vessel  first,  and  the  stream  of  tin  in- 
creased till  the  vessel  is  full  ; then  pour  out 
the  tin  suddenly, and  invert  the  vessel  till  it  is 
cold.  Sheets  of  iron  are  tinned,  in  the  man- 
ufactories of  tin  plate,  by  immersing  the 
sheets,  endwise,  in  a pot  of  melted  tin,  the 
4op  of  which  is  covered  with  about  two  inches 
depth  of  tallow.  This  tallow  answers  a bet- 
ter purpose,  after  it  has  become  brown  by 
use,  than  if  does  at  first.  The  only  prepara- 
tion of  the  iron  sheets  is,  to  scour  them  per- 
fectly clean  and  bright, 

43.  To  GIVE  TIN  THE  WHITENESS  AND 
BRILLIANCY  OF  SILVER.— To  a Solution  of 
mercury  in  nitric  acid,  add  about  half  as  much 
sulphuric  acid,  as  the  solution  contains  of  the 
nitric  ; this  will  precipitate  the  mercury  in 
the  form  of  a white  powder  ; when  this  has 
subsided,  pour  off  the  acid  and  add  clear  wa- 
ter ; thus  wash  the  powder  from  the  acid, 
then  pour  off  the  water,  and  while  the  precip- 
d 2 


38 


CURIOUS  ARTS. 


itate  is  moist,  rub  it  over  the  tin  with  a piece 
of  glove  leather.  Then  wash  the  tin  with 
water,  and  when  it  is  dry,  rub  it  pretty  hard 
with  a piece  of  fine  dry  woollen  cloth  ; it 
will  resemble  polished  silver. 

44.  To  GIVE  TIN  A CHANGEABLE  CRYSTAL- 
LINE appearance. — Cleanse  the  tin  by  wash- 
ing it  with  warm  soap  and  water,  and  rinse  it 
in  clear  water.  Then  heat  the  tin  to  the 
temperature  of  bare  sufferance  to  the  hand, 
and  pour  on  it,  or  apply  with  a brush  or 
sponge,  a mixture  of  one  ounce  of  muriatic 
acid,  with  one  fourth  of  an  ounce  of  sulphu- 
ric acid,  and  two  ounces  of  water  ; then  im- 
mediately wash  the  tin  in  clear  water.  An- 
other method  is,  to  apply  in  the  same  manner 
a solution  of  two  ounces  of  muriate  of  soda, 
in  four  ounces  of  water,  with  one  ounce  of 
nitric  acid.  In  either  case,  if  the  crystalline 
figures  are  not  bold  enough,  the  operation  may 
be  repeated.  If  a very  small  figure  is  re- 
quired, the  tin  may  be  heated,  nearly  to 
flowing,  and  plunged  into  cold  water,  slight- 
ly acidulated  with  nitric  and  muriatic  acids. 
If  a little  solder  is  drawn  over  the  tin  with  a 
hot  iron  or  copper,  in  such  manner  as  to  form 
a cress,  or  circle,  and  the  opposite  side  of 
the  tin  be  afterwards  crystalized,  it  will  have 
a beautiful  effect. 

45.  To  MAKE  A GOLD  COLOURED  VARNISH 

for  tin«— To  half  a pint  of  alcohol,  in  a 


CURIOUS  ARTS. 


89 


flask,  add  one  ounce  of  guru-shellac,  and  half 
an  ounce  of  turmeric,  both  in  powder  ; set 
the  flask  in  a warm  place,  frequently  shaking 
it,  for  twelve  hours  or  more  ; then  filter  or 
strain  off  the  liquor,  which  may  be  occasion* 
ally  diluted  with  new  rum.  When  this  var- 
nish is  used,  it  must  be  applied  to  the  work 
freely  and  flowing,  and  must  not  be  brushed 
or  rubbed  while  it  is  drying. 

46.  To  MAKE  A ROSE  COLOURED  VARNISH 

for  tin.— -Proceed  as  directed  for  making 
gold  coloured  varnish,  only  substitute  one 
fourth  of  an  ounce  of  the  best  drop-lake,  finely 
ground,  in  the  place  of  turmeric  Note. — A 

transparent  blue  varnish  may  also  be  made  by 
means  of  the  best  prussian  blue  ; and  purple 
or  green,  by  adding  a little  blue  to  the  gold  or 
rose  coloured  varnishes. 

47.  To  MAKE  SHELLAC  VARNISH  FOR  JAP- 
ANNING —To  one  quart  of  the  best  alkohol, 
add  half  a pound  of  the  thinnest  and  most  trans- 
parent gum  shellac  ; mix  and  shake  these  to- 
gether, and  let  them  stand  in  a warm  place 
for  two  or  three  days  ; then  strain  the  varnish 
through  a fine  flannel,  and  bottle  it.  Shellac 
varnish  is  used  for  japanning  lamps,  tea  trays, 
&c.  Any  of  the  colours  commonly  used  for 
oil  painting,  may  be  ground  in  this  varnish  and 
should  be  applied  to  the  work  with  a smooth 
brush,  and  in  a warm  place  ; and  the  work  to 


40 


CURIOUS  ARTS. 


be  japanned,  should  be  perfectly  dry  and 
warm.  , Note  — Most  of  the  writers  on  the 
subject  of  japanning,  have  recommended  seed- 
lac  varnish  ; but  it  is  a fact,  though  not  so 
generally  known  as  it  ought  to  be,  that  shellac 
and  seed-lac  are  the  same  substance  ; the  on- 
ly difference  is,  that  shellac  is  in  a more  clar- 
ified and  refined  state,  than  that  which  is 
called  seed-lac, 

48.  To  MAKE  THE  BEST  COPAL  VABNISH  — 
Take  one  pound  of  gum-copal,  and  melt  it  in  a 
flask  over  a brisk  fire  of  charcoal  ; at  the  same 
time  in  another  flask,  boi  one  pint  of  linseed 
oil  : take  them  from  the  fire  and  mix  them  to- 
gether. Afterwards  add  nearly  a quart  of 
spirits  of  turpentine  ; — cork  the  flask  and  ex- 
pose it  for  a few  days  to  the  rays  of  the  sun, 
which  will  make  it  work  more  smooth  and  shin- 
ing. If  a larger  quantity  is  to  be  made,  a cop- 
per boiler,  that  is  small  at  the  top  will  answer 
to  melt  the  gum  in.  For  ordinary  or  coarse 
work,  a larger  proportion  of  oil  and  a little 
rosin  may  be  added.  If  oil  is  used  in  which 
red  lead  and  litharge  (in  the  proportion  of  half 
a pound  of  each  to  a gallon  of  oiH  have  been 
previously  boiled,  the  varnish  will  the  sooner 
dry 

49.  To  MAKE  A SPIRIT  VARNISH  WITH 
gum-copal — Select  some  of  the  clearest  and 
most  transparent  pieces  of  gum-copal,  puiver- 


Curious  arts. 


41 


ke,  and  mix  them  with  about  four  times  their 
weight  of  oil  of  rosemary  apply  a gentle 
heat,  frequently  shaking  the  mixture  till  the 
gum  is  dissolved,  which  may  require  four  or 
five  hours.  Then  add  a few  drops  of  the  best 
rectified  alcohol,  and  in  half  an  hour  add  a lit- 
tle more,  continuing  the  heat,  but  without 
shaking  the  varnish.  Continue  adding  alcohol 
in  small  quantities,  allowing  sufficient  time 
between  each  addition  for  the  alcohol  to  be- 
come apparently  incorporated  with  the  varnish, 
till  you  have  increased  the  quantity  one  half. 
Let  it  rest  two  or  three  days,  ahd  then  strain 
it  through  a fine  flannel.  JVbfe.— In  making 
this  varnish,  the  heat  should  not  at  any  time 
be  greater  than  the  hand  can  bear  And  as 
some  pieces  of  copal  are  quite  insoluble  in 
alcohol,  it  may  be  expected  that  a consider- 
able sediment  will  remain  after  straining 

50.  To  MAKE  ELASTIC  VARNISH  F°  R UM- 
BRELLAS, or  hat  cases. — o a pint  of  spirits 
of  turpentine,  in  a flask,  add  one  ounce  of  gum 
elastic,  cut  into  very  small  pieces  ; put  in  the 
cork  slightly  and  set  the  flask  in  a warm  place, 
where  the  heat  may  not  be  equal  to  that  of 
boiling  water,  till  the  gum-elastic  is  dissolved, 
which  may  be  effected  in  four  or  five  hours. 
Then  strain  the  solution  through  a strong  lin- 
en or  cotton  cloth,  and  add  half  a pint  of  boil- 
ed linseed  oiL 


CURrOUS  ARTS. 


51.  To  VARNISH  MAPS  AND  PICTURES.— Take 
a piece  of  linen,  or  cotton  cambric,  rather 
larger  than  the  map  or  picture  to  be  varnished, 
and  draw  it  straight  upon  a frame  of  a conven- 
ient size,  and  confine  it  at  the  edges  by  small 
t vks  or  nails.  Lay  a thin  coat  of  fine  rye 
flour  paste  on  this,  and  on  the  back  of  the  pa- 
per that  is  to  be  varnished  ; lay  the  paper  on 
the  cambric  and  press  them  together  till  the 
paper  adheres  fiimly  in  every  part.  When 
this  is  dry,  give  the  face  of  the  print  two  or 
three  coats  of  a strong  solution  of  gum-arabic 
in  water,  allowing  each  sufficient  time  to  be- 
come perfectly  dry.  This  sizing  must  be  ap- 
plied with  a large  smooth  brush,  and  must  be 
spread  over  the  work  very  quickly,  and  with 
as  little  brushing  as  possible.  Afterwards, 
give  the  work  one  or  more  coats  of  a varnish 
composed  of  equal  quantities  of  Venice  turpen- 
ti  e and  rosin,  dissolved  in  alcohol  ; or  either  of 
the  varnishes,  described  48,  49.  Note* — 

Very  small  prints  may  not  require  to  be  past- 
ed on  cambric  ; and  if  the  paper  be  very 
thick,  the  turpentine  varnish  may  be  applied 
without  the  previous  sizing. 

52.  To  MAKE  A PRINT  APPEAR  ON  A GOLD 

ground. — Dilute  Venice  turpentine  with  spir- 
its of  turpentine  till  it  works  freely  with  a 
camel-hair  pencil  ; — day  a coat  of  this  varnish 
on  ary  part  of  a print  or  picture,  observing  to 
keep  the  pencil  within  the  lines*  that  the 


CURIOUS  ARTS. 


4S 


varnish  may  not  spread  beyond.  Then  lay  a 
coat  of  the  Varnish  on  the  same  part  of  the 
back  of  the  paper  and  lay  on  a leaf  of  gold 
over  the  varnished  part  ; — press  down  the 
gold  very  gently  with  cotton,  and  the  varnish 
having  rendered  the  paper  transparent,  the 
face  of  the  picture  will  appear  as  if  those 
parts  were  printed  in  gold.  By,  this  varnish 
(which  is  less  liable  to  spread  in  the  paper 
than  oil)  pictures  may  be  so  prepared,  that 
the  colours  of  various  parts  of  them,  may  be 
varied  and  changed  at  pleasure,  by  placing 
pieces  of  silk  or  paper  of  different  colours  oa 
the  back  of  them. 

530  Best  method  of  tracing  or  copy- 
ing a picture.— Perhaps  the  most  simple 
met  hod  of  copying  the  outlines  of  a picture,  is 
to  place  the  picture  against  a window,  with 
the  paper  over  it,  on  which  the  copy  is  to  be 
drawn  ; the  principal  lines  of  the  picture  will 
be  seen  through  the  other  paper,  and  may 
readily  be  traced  with  a lead  pencil.  But  the 
usual  manner  of  copying,  in  landscape  painting* 
and  which  will  answer  for  pictures  of  any 
size,  is  to  rub  over  the  back  of  the  picture 
with  plumbago,  or  red  ochre  ; then  lay  the 
picture  on  the  ground  that  is  to  receive  the 
copy,  and  trace  the  lines  with  a smooth  point- 
ed steel,  or  piece  of  harfl  wood.  The  ground 
will  thus  be  very  accurately  and  distinctly 
marked,  by  the  plumbago  or  ochre  adhering  to 


u 


CURIOUS  ARTS. 


the  ground  in  the  lines  that  are  traced:  When 
several  copies  are  to  be  taken  from  the  same 
pattern,  (which  frequently  occurs  in  orna- 
mental painting,)  the  outlines  of  the  first  copy 
may  be  perforated  with  some  pointed  instru- 
ment, so  that  being  laid  on  the  other  grounds 
that  are  to  receive  the  copies,  and  brushed 
over  with  a little  fine  dry  whiting,  or  red 
ochre,  (as  the  case  may  require)  the  whiting 
or  ochre  will  penetrate  the  perforated  lines  of 
the  pattern,  and  thus  mark  the  ground  on 
which  it  is  laid* 

54.  The  construction  and  use  of  a copy- 
ing machine — Take  two  strips  of  wood? 
which  may  be  about  three  feet  long,  one  inch 
wide,  and  one-fourth  of  an  inch  thick  ; lay 
them  on  a table,  parallel  to  each  other,  and 
eighteen  inches  apart  Across  these,  lay  three 
other  strips,  which  must  be  eighteen  inches 
long,  that  each  end  of  each  piece  may  rest  on 
one  of  the  longer  strips.  Two  of  these  must 
lie  across  the  opposite  ends  of  the  longer 
pieces,  and  the  other  across  the  centre,  thus 
forming  two  squares.  Drive  a pin  through  the 
ends  of  the  short  pieces,  or  confine  them  by 
rivets  to  the  others,  but  not  so  as  to  prevent 
their  playing  circularly  on  the  rivets.  Then 
drive  a.  pin  or  pivot  through  the  centre  of  the 
middle  cross-bar  into  the  table,  or  board  on 
which  the  work  lies.  In  one  end  of  one  of  the 
long  strips  (which  may  project  a littie  over  the 


CURJOUS  ARTS* 


45 


cross-bar)  fix  a lead  pencil,  with  the  point 
downward,  so  that  it  may  bear  lightly  on  the 
board  ; *and  under  this  pencil,  place  the  paper 
that  is  to  receive  the  copy.  And  in  the  oppo- 
site end  of  the  other  piece,  fix  a smooth  iron 
point,  in  a manner  similar  to  that  of  the  pen- 
cil, and  under  this  point  place  the  picture  that 
is  to  be  copied.  Then  with  the  iron  point, 
carefully  trace  the  lines  of  the  picture,  and 
the  pencil  in  the  opposite  corner  will  move  in 
a transverse  direction,  and  draw  the  same 
picture  very  accurately  on  the  other  paper* 
If  you  fix  the  pencil  half  way  between  its  for- 
mer place  and  the  middle  cross-bar,  and  re- 
move the  pivot  to  a point  that  is  directly  in  a 
line  with  the  pencil  and  the  iron  point,  it  will 
give  a copy  in  exact  proportion,  but  only  one 
fourth  part  as  large  as  the  picture  that  is  copi- 
ed. Thus  the  copy  may  be  decreased  or  in- 
creased to  any  size,  and  still  retain  its  regu- 
lar proportions.  In  this  manner,  painting  on 
wood  or  canvass  may  be  copied,  which  could 
not  readily  be  done  in  any  other  wray. 

55.  To  PRODUCE  THE  EXACT  LIKENES$ 
OF  ANY  OBJECT,  INSTANTLY  ON  PAPER. This 

may  be  readily  effected  by  laying  the  paper 
on  a table,  and  holding  a double  convex  lens 
(a  common  sun-glass)  over  it,  and  then  plac- 
ing a mirror  over  the  lens,  in  an  oblique  posi- 
tion so  as  to  face  partly  downward,  and  partly 

E 


46 


CURIOUS  ARTS. 


towards  the  object  that  is  to  be  represented. 
The  rays  of  light  passing  from  the  object  to 
the  mirror,  will  be  reflected  downward 
through  the  lens,  and  produce  the  likeness  of 
the  object  in  full  colours  on  the  paper.  This 
experiment  may  be  easily  made  in  the  eve- 
ning, by  reflecting  the  flame  of  a candle  in  this 
manner,  which  will  appear  very  brilliant  on 
the  paper.  But  in  order  to  render  the  reflec- 
tion of  an  object  distinctly  visible  by  day  light, 
it  may  be  requisite  to  exclude  nearly  all  the 
light  from  the  paper,  except  what  fails  through 
the  lens.  In  all  cases,  the  lens  must  be  plac- 
ed at  a distance  above  the  paper,  according 
to  its  focus,  or  the  distance  at  which  it  would 
contract  the  rays  of  the  sun  to  the  smallest 
point.  A very  convenient  camera  obscura, 
for  drawing  landscapes,  or  even  portraits  may 
be  constructed  as  follows  : Make  a box  of 
boards,  in  the  form  of  a regular  cube,  being 
one  foot  in  length,  breadth  and  height  ; bore 
a hole  of  one  inch  diameter,  through  the  cen- 
tre of  the  top  ; and  on  this,  fix  a double  con- 
vex lens,  the  focus  of  which  must  reach  the 
bottom  of  the  box.  Make  an  aperture  of  a- 
bout  six  inches  in  length,  and  one  in  breadth, 
through  one  side  of  the  box  at  the  top,  by 
shaving  oil,  or  hollowing  the  edge  in  such  man- 
ner that  when  you  put  your  face  to  the  aper- 
ture to  look  into  the  box,  it  will  exclude  all 
the  light  except  what  falls  through  the  lens. 
Make  a hole  through  each  end  of  the  box. 


CURIOUS  ARTS. 


47. 


near  the.  bottom,  large  enough  to  put  in  the 
hands,  with  paper  and  pencil.  On  the  top  of 
the  box,  on  the  right  and  left  sides  of  the  lens, 
fix  two  pieces  of  boards,  which  may  be  about 
four  inches  high,  eight  inches  long,  and  three 
inches  distant  from  each  other.  Between 
these  boards,  fix  a piece  of  looking  glass, 
three  inches  square,  and  feeing  from  you  ; 
the  lower  edge  of  the  glass,  being  near  the 
lens,  on  the  side  towards  you  ; and  the  upper 
edge  inclining  towards  you  about  thirty  de- 
grees from  a perpendicular.  Directly  over, 
and  nearly  four  inches  above  the  lens,  place 
another  mirror,  the  centre  of  which  must  face 
directly  towards  the  lower  edge  of  the  first. 
Cover  the  glass-box  so  as  to  exclude  all  the 
light  from  the  glasses  except  what  fells  on 
them  horizontally  from  objects  directly  in 
front  of  you,  and  place  a sheet  of  paper  on  the 
bottom  of  the  box  inside.  The  rays  of  light, 
passing  from  objects  in  front,  will  be  reflect- 
ed from  the  first  mirror  to  the  second,  and 
from  the  second,  through  the  lens  to  the  pa- 
per, where  you  will  have  a perfect  similitude 
of  the  objects  in  view,  in  full  colours,  and  true 
perspective,  and  may  trace  them  on  the  pa- 
per, with  a pencil  or  pen. 

56.  Copper-plate  engraving. —For  this 
purpose,  provide  a plate  of  copper,  rather 
larger  than  the  design  that  is  to  be  engraved, 
and  may  be  about  one  sixteenth  of  an  inch 


48 


0URIOUS  ARTS. 


thick  ; planish  this  by  rubbing  it,  first,  direct- 
ly length-wise,  and  afterwards  breadth-wise 
with  a piece  of  pumice-stone,  which  may  be 
dipped  occasionally  in  a mixture  of  one  part 
nitric  acid,  with  six  or  seven  parts  water. — 
Then  wash  the  copper  with  clear  water,  and 
rub  it  with  an  oil  stone  that  has  a plane  sur- 
face ; and  then  polish  it  with  a piece  of  char- 
coal. that  has  been  ighited  to  redness  and 
quenched  in  cold  water.  Afterwards  burnish 
the  copper  by  rubbing  it  with  polished  steel. 
Lay  a piece  of  transparent  paper  on  the  design 
that  is  to  be  engraved,  and  trace  the  principal 
lines  with  a lead  pencil  : — thenbrush  overthe 
copy  or  tracing  with  dry  red  ochre,  and  hav- 
ing rubbed  the  copper  plate  with  a piece  of 
bees-wax,  lay  the  red  side  of  the  tracing  on 
the  plate  ; then  with  a smooth  iron  point, 
trace  the  same  lines  again,  that  they  may  thus 
be  transferred  to  the  plate  by  means  of  the 
red  ochre  and  wax  Take  up  the  paper  and 
trace  the  lines  on  the  plate  with  a needle,  thus 
scoring  the  lines  slightly  on  the  copper.  Then 
warm  the  plate  and  wipe  of  the  wax,  or  wash 
it  off  with  spirits  of  turpentine,  and  rub  the 
plate  with  fine  dry  whiting  The  next  instru- 
ment to  proceed  with  is  a graver  ; consisting 
of  a blade  of  steel  about  three  inches  long, 
which  is  fixed  in  a convenient  handle  like  an 
awl.  The  form  of  the  graver  should  be  tri- 
angular, or  between  a triangle  and  lozenge, 
having  two  sides  plane  and  the  other  round  or 


eURiOTJS  ARTS. 


49 


swelled  ; and  should  taper  regularly  from  the 
handle  to  the  point,  or  nearly  so,  but  the  point 
must  be  ground  off  obliquely  so  that  the  edge 
may  extend  a little  farther  than  the  back  ; and 
the  edge  should  rise  a little  rounding  towards 
the  point.  It  is  very  essential  that  the  edge 
and  point  of  the  graver  should  be  kept  very 
sharp . The  manner  of  holding  the  graver,  is  to 
take  the  handle  in  the  hollow  of  the  hand,  press- 
ing it  with  three  fingers,  on  one  side,  and  the 
thumb  on  the  other,  and  extend  the  fore  finger 
on  the  back  of  the  blade  towards  the  point. — 
The  edge  of  the  graver  must  rest  on  the  plate, 
and  its  motion  when  cutting  must  be  endwise 
in  all  cases  ; though  there  evidently  might  be 
a graver  constructed,  which  might,  in  some  ca- 
ses, be  handled  in  a manner  more  similar  to 
that  of  a pen  or  pencil.  A graver  of  a square 
form  may  also  be  requisite,  for  cutting  large 
and  broad  lines  occasionally  . In  proceeding  to 
engrave  the  plate,  begin  with  the  outlines,  ob- 
serving to  press  harder  or  lighter  on  the  gra- 
ver, as  the  lines  require  to  be  larger  or  small- 
er, and  finish  each  line  with  the  same  motion 
if  possible,  without  taking  the  graver  off  the 
plate.  Having  cut  the  outlines,  proceed  to  fill 
up,  and  shade  the  work  discretionally,  accord- 
ing to  the  design.  It  may  be  requisite,  after 
part  of  the  work  is  engraved,  to  scrape  it 
lightly  with  the  edge  of  the  graver,  to  take  off 
any  roughness,  that  may  have  been  formed  o» 
e 2 


50  CURIOUS  ARTS. 

the  part  engraved.  If  after  finishing  the  de- 
sign, any  part  appears  to  have  been  improper- 
ly executed,  such  parts  may  be  erased  by  the 
burnisher,  and  may  be  re-engraved  with  the 
requisite  amendments. 

57.  Etching  on  copper  plates. — Melt  to- 
gether two  ounces  of  bees-v\ax,  and  one  ounce 
of  venice  turpentine,  and  when  the  wax  is  mel- 
ted and  boils,  add  by  small  quantities,  two  ounc- 
es of  gum-asphaltum, stirring  the  mixture  brisk- 
ly at  the  same  time  ; and  when  the  mixture  is 
well  incorporated,  take  it  from  the  fire,-— let 
it  cool  a little,  and  then  pour  it  into  warm  wa- 
ter and  by  working  it  with  the  hands,  form  it 
into  balls  of  about  an  inch  in  diameter,  and 
wrap  each  of  them  in  a piece  of  taffety,  or 
thin  silk . Then,  having  prepared  and  polished 
a plate  of  copper,  as  directed  lor  copper  plate 
engraving,  warm  the^ plate  sufficiently  to  melt 
the  balls  of  wax  varnish,  and  rub  one  of  them 
over  it.  till  every  part  of  the  polished  side  is 
covered  with  the  varnish  ; then  with  a ball  of 
cotton,  wrapped  or  tied  up  in  taffety,  beat 
every  part  of  the  varnished  plate  gently,  while 
the  varnish  is  yet  flowing,  that  it  may  spread 
the  more  even  and  uniformly.  Then  hold  the 
plate  in  a horizontal  position,  with  the  varnish- 
ed side  down,  and  hold  the  flame  of  a wax 
candle  under  it  ora  small  roll  of  paper  that 
has  been  dipped  in  melted  wax,  and  thus  black- 
en the  varnish  while  the  plate  is  yet  warm 


CURIOUS  ARTS. 


51 


enough  to  keep  it  in  a melted  state.  When 
the  varnish  has  become  sufficiently  and  uni- 
formly black,  let  the  plate  cool,  and  having 
drawn  the  design  on  transparent  paper,  rub 
over  the  face  of  it  with  chalk  ; then  wipe  off 
most  of  the  chalk  with  a piece  of  flannel,  lay 
the  chalked  side  on  the  varnish,  and  trace  the 
lines,  somewhat  minutely,  with  a smooth 
round  pointed  needle.  Then  take  up  the  pa- 
per, and  proceed  to  scoring  the  lines  in  the 
varnish.  For  this  purpose  you  must  be  pro- 
vided with  several  needles  of  different  sizes, 
and  fixed  in  handles,  which  may  be  about  four 
inches  long,  and  nearly  half  an  inch  in  diameter, 
and  the  needle  may  project  three  fourths  of  an 
inch  from  the  handle,  come  of  these  may  be 
ground  a little  flat  on  one  side,  and  others  may 
be  round,  but  taper  more  abruptly  at  the  point. 
These  needles  may  be  held  and  managed 
much  the  same  as  a pen.  Begin  scoring  with 
the  out  lines,  observing  to  cut  completely 
through  the  varnish,  but  it  is  not  requisite  to 
scratch  the  copper,  except  in  making  very 
heavy  lines,  when  it  cannot  well  he  avoided. 
1 Saving  finished  scoring  the  varnish  according 
to  the  design,  fix  a border  of  wax  (composed  of 
two  parts  bees-wax  and  one  of  Venice  turp  - 
tine)  round  the  work,  on  the  margin  of  t e 
plate.  This  border  may  be  about  half  an  im  h 
hi?;h,  and  must  be  fixed  to  the  plate  whi'e 
warm.  Then  pour  on  as  much  nitric  arid, 
diluted  with  an  equal  quantity  of  water,  as  the 


&£  CURIOUS  ARTS, 

plate  with  the  border  will  contain.  In  about 
fifteen  minutes,  pour  off  the  acid,  and  exam- 
ine whether  it  has  sufficiently  corroded  any 
part  of  the  work  ; if  so,  lay  a mixture  of  warm 
tallow  and  linseed  oil  over  such  parts  with  a 
hair  pencil,  and  again  pour  on  the  acid.  In 
half  an  hour  more  the  acid  may  be  poured  off, 
and  the  plate  being  warmed,  the  border  may 
be  removed,  and  the  varnish  may  be  wiped  off 
with  a piece  of  linen  cloth  the  plate  may 
then  be  washed  with  olive  oil,  and  cleansed  as 
before  with  dry  fine  whiting.  JVoJe. — Differ- 
ent artists  use  a variety  of  different  prepara- 
tions of  varnish  for  the  purpose  of  etching.  In 
some  old  recipes,  virgin  wax,  calcined  asphaD 
turn,  gum  mastic,  amber,  colophony,  greek 
pitch,  burgundy  pitch,  black  pitch,  resin,  shoe 
makers’  wax,  &c.  &e.  are  mentioned.  But  it 
is  believed  that  the  above  described  varnish, 
while  it  is  much  more  simple,  will  answer 
equally  as  well  for  young  practitioners  ; and  it 
is  not  expected  that  any  will  attempt  very  nice 
work,  without  further  information  than  they 
could  expect  to  obtain  from  the  sketches  in 
this  little  collection, 

58.  Engraving  and  scraping  in  mezzo- 
tinto. — Having  prepared  a plate  of  copper, 
proceed  to  score  it  so  full  of  lines,  cross-lines 
and  diagonal  lines,  that  when  they  are  filled 
with  ink,  the  plate  may  appear  quite  black. 
For  this  purpose  an  instrument  will  be  requis- 


/ CURIOUS  ARTS* 


53 


ite  that  is  fashioned  similar  to  a cliissel,  the 
round  or  sloping  side  being  scored  or  filed  near 
the  point,  with  lines  or  notches  very  near  to 
each  other,  so  as  to  form  a set  of  sharp  uniform 
teeth  at  the  edge  ; this  instrument  is  called  a 
cradle,  and  should  be  a little  round  at  the  corn- 
ers. This  cradle  must  be  moved  over  the 
plate,  in  the  manner  of  a graver,  scoring  the 
p ate  uniformly  in  various  directions.  When 
the  scoring  is  finished,  take  a scraper,  w hich 
may  be  similar  to  a knife,  having  two  edges, 
and  sloping  on  each  side  towards  the  point  ; 
with  this, scrape  off  the  roughness  of  the  plate, 
iu  such  places  as  is  required  to  be  the  lightest 
in  the  print ; such  parts  as  require  to  be 
shaded  partially,  may  not  be  scraped  so  deep, 
while  the  points  that  are  to  be  the  brightest 
maybe  burnished  quite  smooth  with  the  pol- 
ished end  of  a piece  of  steel,  about  the  size  of 
a large  nail,  and  some  of  the  heaviest  out- lines 
may  be  cut  with  a graver.  Thus  any  portraits 
or  other  figures  may  be  formed  on  the  plate, 
with  due  proportion  of  light  and  shade, and  will, 
if  properly  managed,  give  an  impression  on  pa- 
per, equal  in  elegance  to  any  that  might  be 
produced  by  other  means. 

59.  Etching  in  aqua-tinta  — Polish  the 
plate  of  copper,  the  same  as  for  engraving  ; 
moisten  the  plate  with  water  and  sift  on  finely 
powdered  rosin  and  gum  asphaltum,  so  as  to 
nearly  cover  the  plate  ; then  warm  the  plate 
sufficient  to  make  the  pow7der  adhere, but  not  to 


54 


' CURIOUS  ART  So 


melt  it  entirely . Transfer  the  design  to  the 
plate,  and  cover  such  parts  as  are  intended  to 
remain  white,  with  a varnish  composed  of  bees 
was  and  linseed  oil,  which  may  be  coloured  a 
very  little  with  black,  and  must  be  applied  to 
the  work,  while  warm,  with  a camel  hair  pen- 
cil. Then  fix  a border  of  wax  round  the  plate, 
and  pour  on  diluted  nitric  acid.  In  about  one 
minute,  pour  off  the  acid,  and  wash  the  plate 
with  clear  water,  but  without  affecting  the 
varnish  ; — dry  the  plate,  and  apply  the  varnish 
to  such  parts  of  the  design  as  are  intended  to 
have  but  a faint  shade  ; then  apply#  the  acid* 
for  a minute  or  two  longer.  Thus  proceed  bit- 
ing in,  and  stopping  out  alternately,  till  every 
part  o?  the  design  has  acquired  its  proper 
shade.  But  if  any  part  requires  a darker 
shade  than  the  ground,  the  powdered  rosin 
may  be  removed  from  such  parts  with  a scra- 
per. When  the  plate  has  become  sufficiently- 
corroded,  the  varnish  may  be  washed  off  with 
oil,  or  spirits  of  turpentine*  and  the  plate  may 
be  cleansed  with  whiting. 

60.  Copper-plate  printing.— The  paper 
on  which  impressions  from  a copper-plate  are 
to  be  taken,  should  be  moistened,  or  wet  down 
two  or  three  days  previous  to  printing  ; this  is 
performed  by  dipping  the  sheets  in  water  sev- 
erally, and  then  laying  them  all  together  un- 
der a heavy  weight  till  they  are  used.  When 
the  paper  is  ready,  the  copper-plate  may  be 


CURIOUS  ARTS. 


si 

warmed  over  a chafing  dish  of  coals,  and  the 
engraved  side  completely  covered  and  all  the 
lines  filled  with  common  printing  ink,  or  ink 
made  of  Frankfort  black,  finely  ground  in  old 
linseed  oil.  This  may  be  done  by  means  of  a 
printing  ball,  or  the  ink  may  be  spread  on  the 
plate  with  a smooth  stiff  brush.  The  plate 
may  then  be  wiped  with  a piece  of  linen  or 
cotton  cloth,  and  afterward  with  the  hand,  be^ 
ing  passed  slowly  but  hardly  over  the  plate  to 
take  off  all  the  ink  except  what  remains  in  the 
lines  of  the  engraving  ; to  accomplish  which 
more  effectually,  the  hand  may  be  rubbed  oc- 
casionally with  dry  whiting.  When  the  plate 
is  thoroughly  cleaned  of  the  redundant  ink,  it 
may  be  laid  on  the  table  of  a rolling  press,  and 
having  a sheet  of  the  moistened  paper  laid  up- 
on the  face  of  it,  and  a piece  of  fine  broad- 
cloth over  the  paper,  the  whole  may  be  pass- 
ed through  the  press,  Then  on  taking  up  the 
paper,  it  will  be  found  to  have  received  a 
black  impression  from  the  plate,  according  to 
the  engraving  or  etching,  and  the  plate  may  be 
again  carried  to  the  fire,  to  be  blacked  again 
as  before.  This  is  the  usual  manner  of  print- 
ing ; but  when  a rolling  press  is  not  at  hand, 
the  plate  and  moistened  paper  may  by  other 
means,  be  pressed  hard  and  firmly  together, 
and  the  paper  will  have  received  the  impress 
sion,  equally  as  fair.  Any  of  the  colours,  com- 
monly used  in  oil  painting,  being  ground  very 
thick  in  oil  maybe  substituted  for  ink  in  cop- 


56 


CURIOUS  ARTS. 


per-plate  printing.  The  plate,  after  being* 
used,  should  be  wiped  clean  with  a piece  of 
flannel,  moistened  with  olive  oil. 

61.  Etching  letters  or  flowers  on 
glass.-— select  a piece  of  glass  that  is  thick 
and  straight,  and  lay  a coat  of  melted  bees- 
wax on  the  fairest  side  ; then  with  a needle, 
pen-knife,  or  any  other  convenient  pointed  in- 
strument, trace  any  design,  or  picture,  which 
being  placed  under  the  glass,  may  be  seen 
through  the  wax  ; or  form  any  letters  or  figures 
on  the  glass,  carefully  cutting  or  scoring  quite 
through  the  wax,  and  making  the  lines  large 
or  small  as  occasion  may  require.  Then 
warm  a piece  of  the  wax,  so  as  to  form  it  into 
a roll,  about  one  fourth  of  an  inch  in  diameter  ; 
lay  this  roil  round  the  work  upon  the  glass,  and 
press  it  down  so  as  to  make  it  adhere  to  the 
glass,  thus  forming  a border.  Then  take  some 
finely  powdered  fluate  of  lime,  and  strew  it 
evenly  over  the  glass,  on  the  waxed  side,  that 
it  may  fill  all  the  lines  in  the  wax  ; and  then 
gently  pour  upon  it,  so  as  not  to  displace  the 
powder,  as  much  sulphuric  acid,  diluted  with 
thrice  its  weight  of  water,  as  is  sufficient  to 
cover  the  powdered  fluate  of  lime.  Let  every 
thing  remain  in  this  state  for  three  hours  ; 
then  pour  off  the  mixture,  and  clean  the  glass 
by  washing  it  with  spirits  of  turpentine  The 
figures  which  were  scored  in  the  wax,  will  be 
found  engraven  on  the  glass ; while  the  parts 


etmious  arts. 


51 

which  the  wax  covered,  will  be  uncorroded. — 
This  glass  plate  may  be  charged  with  ink,  (or 
any  thick  oil  paint  and  impressions  may  be  ta- 
ken from  it  on  paper,  the  same  as  from  copper 
plates,  only  caution  is  requisite,  that  the  glass 
be  not  broken  by  the  pressure.  Note  — The 
fluoric  acid,  which  is  partly  absorbed  by  the 
water,  in  the  above  process,  being  very  corro- 
sive, should  not  be  suffered  to  touch  the  hands, 
nor  any  valuable  vessel  whatever. 

62*  To  CUT  GLASS  WTTH  A PIECE  OF  IRON.— 
Draw  with  a pencil  on  paper,  any  pattern  t© 
which  you  would  have  the  glass  conform,  and 
place  the  pattern  under  the  glass,  which,  how- 
ever, must  not  rest  on  a board,  or  any  other 
plane  surface.  Then  take  a common  spike, 
or  some  similar  piece  of  iron,  heat  it  to  red* 
ness,  and  apply  the  point  to  the  edge  of  the 
glass,  which  will  immediately  crack;  then 
move  the  iron  slowly  over  the  glass,  tracing 
the  pattern,  and  the  chink  in  the  glass  will  fol- 
low very  closely  in  every  direction,  according 
to  the  motion  of  the  iron.  It  may  some- 
times be  found  requisite,  however,  especially 
in  forming  corners,  to  apply  a wet  finger  to  the 
opposite  side  of  the  glass.  Tumblers,  or  oth- 
er glasses  may  be  cut  or  divided  very  fanciful- 
ly by  similar  means.  The  iron  must  be  re-heat- 
ed  as  often  as  the  crevice  in  the  glass  ceases 
to  follow. 


F 


58 


CURIOUS  ARTSi 


63.  To  MAKE  BRUNSWICK  BLACKING  F0& 
picture  glasses.— Take  one  pound  of  gum- 
asphaltum  and  melt  it  over  a slow  fire  ; then 
take  it  from  the  fire  and  add  spirits  of  turpen- 
tine in  small  quantities,  stirring  it  briskly  till 
it  is  of  the  consistence  of  varnish.  As  there 
is  some  danger  of  its  taking  fire  when  the 
spirits  of  turpentine  is  added,  it  may  be  well 
to  be  provided  with  a piece  of  wet  flannel,  t.o> 
throw  over  it  if  that  should  happen.  When  it 
is  nearly  cold,  strain  it  through  a flannel,  and 
bottle  it  for  use.  This  blacking  is  used  for 
bordering  picture  glasses,  and  is  probably  the 
most  perfect  black  in  nature.  It  is  water 
proof  and  dries  very  quick. 

64.  Best  cement  for  joining  glass.— If 
the  glass  is  not  likely  to  be  exposed  to  moisture, 
the  pieces  may  be  joined  by  a solution  of  equal 
parts  of  gum-arabic  and  loaf  sugar  in  water  ; 
or  if  these  are  not  at  hand,  the  white  of  an 
egg  may  answer  nearly  as  well.  But  a strong 
water-proof  cement  that  is  equally  transpar- 
ent, may  be  made  by  digesting  finely  powder- 
ed gum-copal,  in  thrice  its  weight  of  sulpuric 
ether  till  it  is  dissolved.  This  solution  may 
be  applied  to  the  edges  of  the  broken  glass, 
with  a camel  hair  pencil,  and  the  pieces  must, 
be  put  together  immediately  and  pressed  dose 
till  they  adhere. 


CURIOUS  ARTS. 


53 


65.  Best  cement  for  joining  china  or 
' crockery.-— Heat  a piece  of  chalk  to  a full 

Teel  beat  in  a fire  ; and  while  this  is  heating, 
take  the  white  of  an  egg,  and  mix  and  beat  to- 
gether with  it,  one  fourth  of  its  weight  of  pow- 
dered or  scraped  cheese,  (such  as  is  most  void 
of  cream,  or  oily  matter  is  preferable)  or  the 
curd  that  is  formed  by  adding  vinegar  to,  skim- 
med milk  ; — take  the  chalk  from  the  fire,  and. 
before  it  is  cold,  reduce  it  to  powder,  and  add 
as  much  of  it  to  the  mixture  as  will  form  a 
thick  paste,  and  beat  them  anew  all  together,, 
and  use  the  composition  immediately.  When-- 
this  is  dry,  it  will  resist,  in  a great  measure, 
either  heat  or  moisture.  A.  semi-transparent 
cement,  suitable  for  china  ware,  may  be  made 
fey  gently  boiling  the  flour  of  rice  with  water. 

66.  To  MAKE  A STRONG  WATER  PROOF 

glue.— Dissolve  common  glue  in  water  in  the 
usual  way,  and  dip  into  it  some  clean  paper, 
sufficient  to  take  up  an  ounce  or  more  of  the 
glue.  When  the  paper  is  nearly  dry,  roll  it 
up,  or  cut  it  into  strips  and  put  them  into  a 
wide  mouthed  phial  or  flask,  with  about  four 
ounces  of  alcohol ; suspend  this  over  a fire  so 
as  to  boil  it  gently  for  an  hour,  having  the 
cork  set  in  slightly  to  prevent  its  taking  fire, 
but  not  so  as  to  prevent  the  vapour  entirely. 
Then  take  out  the  paper  (the  only  use  of  which 
is  to  give  the  glue  more  surface  for  the  action 
@f  the  alcohol)  and  add  one  ounce  of  gum-shellac 


60 


CURIOUS  ARTS.. 


in  powder  ; continue  the  heat,  often  shaking 
the  mixture  till  the  shellac  is  dissolved.  Then 
evaporate  it  to  the  proper  cons’stence  for  use. 
Note. — Many  experiments  have  been  made,  in 
order  to  discover  some  aqueous  size,  that  when 
dry,  would  resist  moisture  : and  some  have  re- 
commended skimmed  milk,  and  others  vinegar 
as  a menstruum  for  the  glue.  But  it  d es  not 
appear  from  trial,  that  either  of  these  are  hut 
very  little  better  for  this  purpose  than  water  ; 
nor  is  it  probable  that  any  similar  composition 
of  size  will  resist  moisture  much  better  than 
common  glue  especially  if  it  be  mixed  with 
sulphate  of  lime,  or  some  similar  substance  by 
way  of  support. 

67  The  art  of  moulding  figures  in 
relief. — Hix  together  and  temper  with  a so- 
lution of  gum-arabic  in  water,  one  part  of  clean 
sifted  wood-ashes,  and  two  parts  of  fine  sul- 
phate of  lime,  Knead  this  composition  on  a 
board,  till  it  has  the  consistence  of  putty,— 
Press  a ball  of  this  putty  on  any  medal,  coin 
or  carved  work  in  relief,  which  must  he  pre- 
viously oiled)  and  let  it  dry  ; then  take  off  the 
mould  thus  formed,  and  oil  the  part  that  has 
received  the  impression  of  the  figure  with 
olive  oil  ; - make  a small  orifice  through  the 
mould,  from  the  centre,  or  deepest  part  of  the 
impression  ; also,  pore  off  the  border  of  the 
mould,  to  within  half  an  inch  of  the  impressed 
figure.  Then  lay  a small  piece  of  the  putty 


CURIOUS  ARTS. 


61 


on  tlie  board,  and  press  the  mould  down  bard 
upon  it,  that  it  may  not  only  fill  the  mould, 
but  that  the  redundant  part  may  be  pressed 
out  beyond  the  border  of  the  mould  : raise  the 
mould  a little  and  blow  through  the  orifice,  to 
detach  the  new  moulded  figure  from  the  mould. 
Thus  any  number  of  figures  may  be  readily 
produced,  suitable  for  ornamenting  chimney 
pieces  or  mouldings,  and  which  will  be  very 
lard  when  dry,  and  may  be  painted  with  any 
coloured  oil  paints,  which  will  also  preserve 
them  from  moisture. 

68,  To  CAST  IMAGES  IN  PLASTER,— For  this 

purpose  a model  of  the  figure  that  is  to  be  cast, 
must  be  provided,  and  suspended  by  a rod  or 
staff,  one  inch  in  diameter,  and  fixed  in  the  top 
of  the  head.  This  model  may  be  made  of 
wood,  chalk,  or  any  other  substance  that  is 
smooth,  and  sufficiently  cohesive  to  support 
itself.  This  being  prepared,  mix  fine  sulphate 
of  lime  with  water,  to  the  consistence  of  soft 
putty,  and  having  brushed  some  olive  oil  over 
the  model,  cover  it  completely  with  the  plas- 
ter, which  must  be  applied,  and  spread  over 
it  with  the  hands,  to  the  depth  of  two  inches 
or  more.  When  the  plaster  is  nearly  dry,  di- 
vide it  into  several  parts  with  a thin  blade,  so 
as  to  take  it  off  from  the  model  without  break- 
ing any  part.  When  the  several  parts  of  the 
mould  are  dry,  oil  them  inside  and  put  them 


62 


CURIOUS  ARTS. 


together  as  before,  and  bind  them  together 
with  pieces  of  tape  or  twine  ; set  the  mould 
upright,  and  till  it  with  a fresh  mixture  of  sul- 
phate of  lime  and  water,  of  as  much  consis- 
tence as  may  be  poured  in  through  the  aper- 
ture at  the  head.  This  \ 1 ster  should  be 
poured  into  the  mould  as  quick  as  possible  af- 
ter being  mixed,  otherwise  it  would  become 
too  stiff,  and  be  spoiled.  The  plaster  in  the 
mould  will  soon  cohere,  so  that  the  mould  may 
be  taken  off,  and  the  figures  may  be  set  up  to 
dry  ; and  the  mould  being  oiled  and  put  to- 
gether again,  is  ready  for  another  cast. 

69.  To  PRODUCE  EMBOSSED  LETTERS,  OR 
figures  on  marble.— Take  seme  of  the  col- 
oured varnish  described  at  37,  and  with  a hair 
pencil,  draw  the  letters,  &c  on  the  marble, 
(which  should  be  previously  well  polished,) 
a sd  also  cover  with  the  varnish,  every  part  of 
the  face  of  the  marble  that  is  to  remain  plain. 
Lay  the  marble  in  a horizontal  position  and 
make  a border  of  oil  putty  round  it,  and  pour 
on  muriatic  acid  to  the  depth  of  half  an  inch 
on  the  marble.  When  ebullition  ceases,  the 
acid  may  he  drained  off,  and  the  work  examin- 
e • / ; and  if  the  letters  are  not  sufficiently  prom- 
inent,' a fresh  nuantity  of  the  acid  may  be  ad- 
ded, When  the  work  has  been  thus  corroded 
to  the  depth  required,  the  varnish  may  be 
washed  off  with  spirits  of  turpentine.  The 
acid  that  has  been  thus  employed  need  not  be 


CURIOUS  ARTS. 


63 


lost,  for  a muriate  of  lime  being  thus  formed, 
may  be  crystallized  by  a slight  evaporation,  and 
preserved  for  other  purposes  ; or  by  the  ad- 
dition of  a small  quantity  of  sulphuric  acid  a 
sulphate  of  lime  is  precipitated,  and  the  rnuri- 
atic  may  be  poured  off  and  may  be  used  again 
for  the  same  or  a similar  purpose. 

70.  To  soften  stone. — Garble  or  granite 
may  be  deprived  in  some  measure,  of  the 
property  of  cohesion  by  being  heated  red  hot, 
and  then  quenched  in  oil.  In  this  case,  the 
carbonic  acid  which  constitutes  the  cohesive 
property  of  the  stone,  is  expelled  by  the  heat  ; 
and  the  vacuum  thus  produced  in  its  pores,  are 
in  some  measure,  filled  with  the  oil  by  the 
pressure  of  the  atmosphere  ; by  which  means 
the  stone  acquires  a texture  quite  different 
from  what  it  had  previously.  This  however, 
is  not  often  applied  to  any  valuable  purpose. 

71.  To  CHANGE  WOOD,  APPARENTLY,  TO 
stone.— Provide  a block,  or  plank  of  soft 
wood,  of  the  dimensions  required,  and  give  it 
two  or  three  coats  of  linseed  oil,  allowing  each 
to  dry.  Then  having  prepared  some  pieces 
of  marble  or  granite  as  directed  in  the  last 
experiment,  pulverize  them  to  a gross  powder; 
brush  over  the  wood  with  a heavy  coat  of  co- 
pal varnish  (see  48  mixed  with  an  equal  quan- 
tity of  Venice  turpentine  ; let  this  rest  about 
an  hour)  and  then  strew  the  stone  powder  over 


64 


CURIOUS  ARTS* 


every  part  of  it,  so  as  to  cover  the  surface 
completely.  If  marble  is  to  be  imitated,  the 
powder  of  different  colours,  especially  the 
white  and  blue,  may  be  prepared  separately, 
and  may  be  strewed  on  the  work  in  such  shades 
as  will  appear  the  most  natural.  Granite 
may  also  be  crossed  or  striped  occasionally, 
with  streaks  of  a coarser  grain,  which  will 
give  it  a very  deceptive  effect.  When  the 
varnish  is  thus  covered  with  stone,  a heavy 
roller,  or  round  log  of  wood,  having  a blanket 
folded  and  wrapped  round  it,  should  be  rolled 
over  the  work  that  the  larger  grains,  (which 
of  course  will  be  the  most  exposed,)  may  the 
more  firmly  adhere.  In  this  manner,  a very 
perfect  imitation  of  stone  may  be  given,  and 
the  wood  thus  prepared  will  be  exceedingly 
durable,  and  will  answer  for  many  purposes,  as 
well  as  real  stone. 

72.  To  RENDER  WOOD,  CLOTH  OR  PAPER 
eire-proof. — Dissolve  one  ounce  of  alum, 
half  an  ounce  of  sub-borate  of  soda  and  half  an 
ounce  of  cherry  tree  gum,  in  half  a pint  of  vin- 
egar. Dip  any  cloth,  or  pieces  of  paper,  or 
wood,  in  this  mixture  and  let  them  dry  ; — they 
cannot  afterwards  be  ignited  so  as  to  blaze, 
but  may  be  considered  safe,  with  regard  to 
their  taking  fire  by  accident. 

73.  To  PRODUCE  FIRE  READILY..— PrO- 

ms  1.  Mix  together  gently  but  intimately* 


CURIOUS  ARTS, 


65 


two  or  three  grains  of  chlorate  of  potass,  and 
an  equal  quantity  of  loaf  sugar,  both  previously 
reduced  to  fine  powder  : — dip  the  end  of  a 
strip  of  glass,  or  a straw  in  sulphuric  acid,  and 
with  it  gently  touch  the  powder,— it  will  in- 
stantly burst  into  flame, 

74,  Process  2. — Upon  one  drachm  of  spirits 
of  turpentine,  in  a glass,  pour  an  equal  quanti- 
ty of  a mixture  of  three  parts  of  nitric,  with 
one  of  sulphuric  acid  Instantaneous  inflamma- 
tion, accompanied  by  the  production  of  a large 
quantity  of  black  smoke,  will  be  the  result. 

75,  Process  3 — Take  a piece  of  phospho- 
rus of  the  size  of  a pin’s  head,  and  wrap  it  in  a 
piece  of  dry  brown  paper  : rub  the  paper  with 
a piece  of  wood,  or  any  hard  body,  and  it  will 
instantly  inflame.  Note , — In  handling  phospho- 
rus, it  is  proper  to  have  a piece  of  paper  or 
cloth  intervene  between  the  stick  of  phospho- 
rus and  the  fingers  ; and  the  phosphorus  should 
be  kept  under  water  except  when  wanted  for 
use. 

76,  Process  4— Mix  together  equal  quanti- 
ties of  chlorate  of  potass  and  loaf  sugar,  both  in 
fine  powder.  Then  take  some  common  brim- 
stone matches,  and  dip  the  ends  of  them,  first 
in  alcohol,  and  then  in  this  mixture  of  powder, 
and  let  them  dry  Afterwards  they  may  be 
ignited  at  any  time  by  dipping,  or  rather  by 


68 


CURIOUS  ARTS. 


barely  touching  the  ends  of  them,  to  sulphuric 
acid. 

77.  To  make  gun  powder. — Pulverize 
separately,  five  drachms  of  nitrate  of  potass, 
one  of  sulphur,  and  one  of  newly  burnt  char- 
coal. Mix  them  together  with  a little  water, 
so  as  to  make  the  compound  into  a dough  ; form 
this  dough  into  rolls  of  the  size  of  a small  wire, 
which  may  be  done  by  rolling  small  quantities 
between  two  boards.  Lay  a few  of  these  rolls 
together,  and  cut  them  into  very  small  grains, 
and  place  them  on  a sheet  of  paper,  in  a warm 
place,  to  dry.  The  dough  may  be  pre- 
vented sticking  to  the  board  while  rolling  it, 
by  rubbing  on  the  board,  a little  dry  compound 
powder.  When  the  grains  are  thoroughly  dry, 
they  are  ready  for  use  or  experiment.  On  the 
same  principle,  gun  powder  is  manufactured 
on  the  large  scale,  but  then  the  several  parts 
of  the  operation,  are  performed  by  machinery, 
otherwise  it  would  be  a very  expensive  com- 
modity. 

78.  TO  MAKE  THE  COMMON  FULMINATING 
powders.— Grind  and  mix  intimately,  three 
parts  of  nitrate  of  potass,  with  two  of  sub-car- 
bonate of  potass,  and  one  of  sulphur.  If  half  a 
drachm  of  this  compound  be  placed  on  a shov- 
el, and  held  over  a gentle  fire,  it  will  soon  ex- 
plode with  a loud  report.  It  is  not,  however, 
attended  with  any  danger.  If  two  grains  of 


CURIOUS  ARTS, 


67 


chlorate  of  potass  in  powder  and  one  of  sul- 
phur be  mixed  together,  and  wrapped  in  a 
piece  of  strong  paper,  and  the  paper  be  then 
struck  with  a hammer,  it  will  also  explode 
with  detonation.  This  experiment  may  re- 
quire some  caution. 

79.  To  MAKE  THE  MERCURIAL  FULMINATING 
powder.— Dissolve  about  half  an  ounce  of 
mercury  in  two  ounces  of  nitric  acid,  assisting 
the  solution  by  heat.  When  the  solution  is 
cold,  pour  it  upon  two  ounces  of  strong  al- 
cohol, previously  introduced  into  a four-ounce 
phial,  and  apply  a moderate  heat  till  efferves- 
cence is  excited.  (Do  not  forget  that  the 
mercurial  solution  must  be  poured  upon  the 
alcohol,  and  not  the  alcohol  upon  the  solution.) 
A white  fume  will  then  begin  to  undulate  on 
the  surface  of  the  liquor,  and  flow  through  the 
neck  of  the  phial,  and  a white  powder  will  be 
gradually  precipitated.  As  soon  as  any  pre- 
cipitate ceases  to  form,  quickly  pour  the  con- 
tents of  the  phial  on  a filter  ; wash  the  pow- 
der with  pure  water,  and  cautiously  dry  it  by 
a heat  not  exceeding  that  of  boiling  water. — - 
The  immediate  washing  the  powder  is  materi- 
al, because  it  is  liable  to  the  re-action  of  the 
nitric  acid  ; and  while  any  of  that  acid  ad- 
lieres  to  it,  it  is  very  subject  to  be  decomposed 
by  the  action  of  light.  From  100  grains  of 
mercury,  about  125  grains  of  the  fulminating 
powder  are  obtained.  With  this  powder,  tor- 


68 


CURIOUS  ARTS* 


pedoes,  and  Waterloo  crackers  are  charged. 
Experiment . — Wrap  half  a grain  of  this  powder 
with  a common  duck-shot,  and  an  equal  weight 
of  sand,  in  a piece  of  thin  paper  and  throw  it 
forcibly  on  the  ground,  and  it  will  explode  with 
a violent  detonation — This  composition  is  less 
dangerous  than  the  fulminating  compounds  of 
gold  and  silver,  as  it  never  explodes  spontane- 
ously ; but  yet  it  cannot  be  handled  with  too 
much  caution. 

80.  To  KINDLE  A FIRE  UNDER  WATER  — 
Put  into  a deep  wine-glass  three  or  four  bits  of 
phosphorus  about  the  size  of  a pin’s  head,  and 
double  the  quantity  of  chlorate  of  potass  in 
crystals,  and  fill  the  glass  nearly  full  of  water. 
Then  dip  a straw  about  two  inches  deep  in 
sulphuric  acid,  and  place  a finger  on  the  up- 
per end  of  the  straw  to  prevent  the  air  ; then 
immerse  the  straw  in  the  water  so  as  to  con- 
vey  the  acid  directly  to  the  salt  and  phospho- 
rus ; a violent  action  will  ensue,  and  the  phos- 
phorus will  burn  vividly  with  a very  curious 
light  under  the  water. 

81.  To  LIGHT  A CANDLE  BY  APPLICATION  OF 
ice. — Attach  to  the  wick  of  a candle,  a small 
piece,  or  globule  of  potassium  (the  metallic 
base  of  potass)  of  the  size  of  a small  shot. — - 
Apply  an  icicle  or  point  of  ice  to  the  metal, 
and  it  will  instantly  inflame.  Note-. — This  cu- 
rious substance,  which  has  the  peculiar  prop- 


CURIOUS  ARTS* 


69 


m ty  of  being  ignited  by  coming  in  contact  with 
ice  or  water,  has  been  lately  discovered  by 
Sir  Humphrey  Davy.  It  is  produced  by  ma- 
king pure  potass  a part  of  the  circuit  of  a pow- 
erful Voltaic  battery.  It  cannot  be  preserved 
but  by  being  kept  immersed  in  naptha,  a kind 
of  oil  of  which  oxygen  is  not  a constituent. 

82.  To  FORM  LETTERS  OR  FLOWERS  OF  RE- 

AL flame.— Provide  a tin  chest  of  about  eigh- 
teen inches  in  length,  equal  in  height  and  one 
inch  in  breadth.  Chalk  any  design,  of  letters 
or  flowers  on  the  face  of  this  chest,  and  pierce 
each  line  with  rows  of  small  holes,  which 
should  be  about  half  an  inch  distant  from  each 
other  Make  an  aperture  at  the  top,  through 
which  pour  about  a pint  of  a mixture  of  rum 
and  spirits  of  turpentine  Place  two  or  three 

lamps  under  the  bottom  of  the  chest  (which 
must  be  raised  a little  from  the  floor  for  that 
purpose  * to  warm  the  spirits,  but  not  so  as  to 
cause  them  to  boil.  Stop  the  aperture  at  the 
top  and  after  eight  or  ten  minutes  (which  time 
should  be  allowed  for  the  vapour  to  expel  the 
atmospheric  air,  which  otherwise  would  cause 
an  explosion)  apply  the  flame  of  a lamp  to  the 
pierced  lines  ; — in  an  instant,  all  the  lines  will 
be  covered  with  flame,  which  will  continue 
till  the  spirits  are  exhausted. 

83.  To  produce  flame  of  various  col- 
ours.—This  may  be  effected  by  mixing  cer- 

G 


70 


CURIOUS  ARTS. 


tain  substances  with  burning  alcohol , or  by  ap< 
plying  them  with  the  point  of  a pen-knife,  to 
the  wick  of  a burning  lamp  or  candle.  Thus 
a beautiful  rose  or  carmine  coloured  flame 
may  be  produced  by  muriate  of  strontia  : this 
is  prepared  by  dissolving  carbonate  of  strontia 
in  muriatic  acid,  and  evaporating  it  to  dryness. 
The  preparation  for  an  orange  colour,  is  muri- 
ate of  lime  ; (a  solution  of  marble  in  muriatic 
acid,  evaporated  to  crystallization)  which 
should  be  exposed  to  a moderate  heat  till  it  is 
deprived  of  its  water  of  crystallization  and 
falls  to  powder.  A fine  green  tinge  is  produ- 
ced by  acetate  of  copper,  or  boracic  acid  ; 
which  last  is  procured  by  adding  sulphuric  acid 
to  a solution  of  borate  of  soda  (in  hot  water) 
till  it  has  a sensibly  acid  taste  ; as  it  cools, 
the  boracic  acid  is  deposited  in  crystals  on  the 
sides  of  the  vessel.  Camphor  gives  to  flame  a 
blue  colour  ; and  nitrate  of  strontia  (prepared 
the  same  as  the  muriate)  a purple.  A bril- 
liant yellow"  may  also  be  produced  by  muriate 
of  soda.  Any  of  these  preparations  being  re- 
duced to  powder,  may  be  ignited  with  three 
or  four  times  their  wreight  of  alcohol,  which 
should  be  previously  warmed  ; and  if  the  ves- 
sel that  contains  it  be  kept  heated  also,  the 
combustion  will  be  the  more  brilliant. 

84.  To  MAKE  SKY-ROCKETS  AND  FIRE 
wheels. — Grind  and  mix  together,  (dry)  one 
pound  of  gun  powder, two  ounces  of  sulphur, twro 


CURIOUS  ARTS. 


71 


ounces  of  nitrate  of  potass,  and  four  ounces  of 
newly  burnt  charcoal.  Then  make  several 
strong  paper  cases  or  catridges,  by  wrapping 
some  strong  paper  (being  moistened  with  paste, ) 
fifteen  or  twenty  times  round  a mould  made  of 
wood, which  may  be  one  inch  in  diameter,  and  ten 
inches  in  length.  One  end  of  this  mould  must  be 
made  smaller,  being  only  one  fourth  of  an  inch 
in  diameter  for  the  space  of  an  inch  of  its 
length  : The  paper  must  be  drawn  up  close 

round  this  neck,  and  strongly  bound  with  twine, 
being  thus  brought  to  a shape  similar  to  the  neck 
of  a phial.  This  neck  is  called  the  choke  of  the 
catridge.  Take  the  paper  from  the  mould, 
and  proceed  in  the  same  manner  with  another. 
When  a sufficient  number  of  catridges  are  thus 
made  and  dry,  place  one  of  them  in  a socket 
wffiich  it  will  fill  up  closely,  and  then  fill  the 
catridge  with  the  above  described  compound 
of  powder,  which  must  be  thrown  into  the  cat- 
ridge  in  small  quantities,  and  each  several 
quantity  must  be  rammed  or  beat  down  very 
hard,  with  a suitable  sized  rammer  and  mallet. 
In  filling  the  catridge,  small  quantities  of  any 
of  the  fine,  colouring  preparations,  describe 
ed  in  the  preceding  article  may  be  added 
occasionally.  When  the  catridge  is  nearly 
fall,  some  small  balls  of  cotton,  dipped  in  spir- 
its of  turpentine,  may  be  added,  to  produce 
the  appearance  called  stars.  Thess  also, 
may  have  some  muriate  of  strontia,  or  horaeic 
acid  strewed  on  them.  Then  place  a circa- 


12 


CURIOUS  ARTS. 


lar  piece  of  thick  paste  board  on  the  materi- 
als in  the  catridge,  having  a small  hole  through 
it,  communicating  with  the  powder  below  ; lay 
upon  this,  half  an  ounce  of  fine  gun  powder, 
and  fold  the  paper  down  upon  it  from  all  sides, 
cementing  the  folds  firmly  with  glue,  thus  giv- 
ing the  end  of  the  catridge  a conical  form.— 
Then  bore  a hole  about  two  thirds  of  the 
length  of  the  catridge  from  the  choke  with  a 
gimblet  or  bit.  Fill  this  hcle  (which  must  he 
as  large  as  the  choke,  but  tapering  towards 
the  other  end ) with  fine  gun-powder,  to  the 
choke,  and  fill  the  choke  with  the  compound, 
the  outside  of  which  may  be  moistened  a lit- 
tle, the  better  to  keep  it  in  its  place.  Finish 
the  others  in  the  same  manner,  and  keep  them 
in  a warm  dry  place  till  used.  They  are  then 
to  be  lashed  firmly  to  the  end  of  a light  pine 
rod,  with  the  choke  towards  the  opposite  end. 
The  length  of  the  rod,  should  be  about  nine 
times  that  of  the  catridge.  The  rocket  then 
being  elevated  by  the  rod,  and  being  ignited  at 
the  choke,  the  compound  inside  burning  inten- 
sely, acts  upon  the  air,  and  causes  it  to  ascend. 
The  catridges  for  fire  wheels,  are  prepared 
in  the  same  manner,  but  are  generally  smaller  ; 
and  instead  of  being  lashed  to  a rod,  they  are 
lashed  to  the  arms  of  a wheel,  in  such  manner, 
that  a violent  rotary  motion  is  produced  by 
their  combustion. 


CURIOUS  ARTS. 


85.  T©  PRODUCE  DETONATING  BALLOONS. — • 
Moisten  and  compress  a bladder  till  no  air  re- 
mains in  it,  and  tie  the  neck  of  it  upon  a perfo- 
rated  cork.  Set  the  cork  in  a flask,  containing 
the  materials  for  producing  hydrogen  gas  (see 
9.)  Thus  convey  into  the  bladder  a quantity 
of  the  gas,  and  then  remove  the  cork,  to  anoth- 
er flask,  containing  two  or  three  ounces  of  red 
lead,  moistened  with  an  ounce  of  sulphuric 
acid  -.—oxygen  gas  will  be  evolved,  and  will 
also  rise  through  the  neck  of  the  flask  ; in  this 
manner,  convey  into  the  bladder,  nearly  half  as 
much  oxygen  gas,  as  it  previously  contained  of 
hydrogen.  Then  tie  the  stem  of  a tobacco 
pipe  in  the  neck  of  the  bladder,  and  dip  the 
bowl  of  the  pipe  in  a solution  of  soap  in  water, 
(soap-suds)  and  compress  the  bladder  a little, 
'so  as  to  swell  a bubble  from  the  bowl  of  the 
pipe  ; — shake  off  the  bubble,  which  being  light- 
er than  atmospheric  air  will  naturally  rise,  or 
float  horizontally  in  the  air.  If  the  flame  of 
a candle  be  brought  in  contact  with  one  of 
these  balloons,  or  floating  bubbles,  it  will  ex- 
plode with  a violent  detonation,  resembling  the 
report  of  a pistol.  If  this  compound  gas  be  for- 
ced into  the  water,  so  as  to  form  several  bub- 
bles on  the  surface,  and  flame  be  then  applied 
to  them,  a volley  of  explosions  will  be  the  re- 
sult. Caution  is  requisite  in  these  experi- 
ments, that  the  fire  be  not  communicated  to 
the  bladder,  as  such  an  explosion  might  not  be 
safe. 


g 2 


74 


CURIOUS  ARTS. 


86.  To  PREPARE  A PHIAL  THAT  WILL  GIVE 
light  in  the  dark. — Fill  a small  phial  about 
one  third  full  of  essential  oil  of  cinnamon  ; add 
to  this  a piece  of  phosporus  equal  to  one  tenth 
of  the  weight  of  the  oil.  Cork  the  phial  and 
wrap  it  in  paper  to  exclude  the  light,,  and  set 
it,  or  suspend  it  in  a warm  place,  but  where 
the  heat  may  not  be  equal  to  that  of  boiling 
water,  till  the  phosphorus  appears  to  be  dissol- 
ved. This  phial  may  be  carried  in  the  pocket, 
and  whenever  the  cork  is  started  in  the  night, 
the  phial  will  evolve  light  enough  to  show  the 
hour  on  a watch. 

87  To  MAKE  A person’s  FACE  APPEAR  LU- 
MINOUS in  the  dark  —Prepare  some  phos- 
phorized  ether,  (as  directed  27,)  and  rub  it 
over  the  face.  This  ether,  though  it  appears 
luminous  in  the  dark  has  not  power  to  burn  any 
thing,  so  that  it  may  be  rubbed  on  the  face  or 
hands  without  danger  ; and  the  appearance 
thereby  produced,  is  most  hideously  frightful. 
All  the  parts  of  the  face  that  have  been  rub- 
bed, appear  to  be  covered  with  a luminous 
bluish  flame,  and  the  mouth  and  eyes  appear 
as  black  spots.  The  luminous  appearance 
may  also  be  repeatedly  heightened,  by  the 
friction  of  a handkerchief,  being  rubbed  over 
the  luminous  part. 

88.  To  FREEZE  WAT^R  IN  WARM  W*  ATH- 
er.— Draw  a thread  through  a small  glass 
tube  ; close  one  end,  and  then  fill  the  tube 


CURIOUS  ARTS. 


75 


with  water.  Mix  together  equal  parts  of  ni- 
trate of  ammonia  and  water,  and  immerse  the 
tube  in  this  mixture.  The  water  in  the  tube 
will  be  frozen  immediately,  and  may  be  drawn 
out  by  the  thread.  The  same  effect  may  be 
produced  by  a mixture  of  equal  quantities  of 
sulphate  of  soda,  and  diluted  sulphuric  acid  ; 
or  if  the  outside  of  the  tube  be  bathed  for  a 
few  minutes  with  sulphuric  ether,  it  will  be 
attended  with  a similar  result. 

89.  To  CHANGE  THE  COLOURS  OF  ANIMALS.— 
Any  black,  or  dark  coloured  spots  on  some  an- 
imals, especially  horses,  may  be  effectually 
changed  to  white,  by  means  of  any  substance 
that  will  chafe  or  blister  the  skin  ; thus  a white 
spot  of  any  shape  may  be  produced  on  a black 
horse,  by  shaving  off  the  hair  from  the  part 
that  is  to  be  thus  marked,  and  apply  a plaster 
of  Spanish  flies,  or  of  quick  lime  moistened 
with  vinegar  ; this  plaster  must  be  cut  to  the 
size  and  form  required  for  the  mark,  and 
must  be  kept  bound  on,  till  the  skin  is  blister- 
ed, or  near  y so  The  next  coat  of  hair  will 
infallibly  be  white.  White  spots  can  be  chan- 
ged to  black  or  brown,  only  by  means  of  oils, 
or  grease.  Bacon  fat  has  been  recommended 
for  this  purpose,  but  if  the  oil  or  fat  of  a bear 
can  be  procured,  it  will  prove  more  effica- 
cious, as  this  fat  is  well  known  tc^have  a re- 
markable tendency  to  darken  the  colour  of  an- 
imals and  even  complexions.  But  either  of 


76 


CURIOUS  ARTS, 


these,  and  in  fact,  many  other  kinds,  will  an- 
swer this  purpose  if  properly  applied,  and  fre- 
quently repeated. 

90.  To  GIVE  LEATHER  A BEAUTIFUL  METAL- 
LIC lustre.— Levigate  one  ounce  of  soft  lead- 
coloured  plumbago,  and  an  equal  quantity  (in 
bulk)  of  lamp-black,  in  a gill  of  alcohol  ; then 
add  half  an  ounce  of  loaf  sugar,  moistened  with 
water  and  grind  ail  together.  The  leather 
must  first  be  brushed  over  smoothly  with  this 
composition,  and  when, dry,  it  must  be  brushed 
hard  and  quickly  with  a dry  smooth  brush  ; or 
may  be  rubbed  with  a piece  of  woollen  cloth. 
This  blacking  will  be  found  useful  for  some 
ornamental  purposes,  but  may  be  rather  too 
brilliant  for  boots  and  shoes. 

91.  An  easy  method  of  extracting  the 
essence  of  roses,— Take  the  leaves  of  roses, 
and  pound  or  bruise  them  : then  stratify  them 
with  an  equal  weight  of  muriate  of  soda,  in  a 
glazed  earthen  vessel  when  thus  filled  to 
the  top,  cover  it  well,  and  set  it  in  the  cellar, 
and  let  it  remain  at  rest  a month  or  more. — 
Afterwards,  strain  off  the  essence  therefrom, 
through  a strong  cloth  by  pressure.  The  es- 
sence thus  procured,  is  quite  equal  if  not  su- 
perior for  culinary  purposes,  to  that  which  is 
procured  by  distillation. 

92.  To  prepare  various  kinds  of  essen- 
ces.— The  manner  of  extracting  the  essential 


CURIOUS  ARTS* 


n 

oils,  being  attended  with  considerable  expense 
of  preparations,  of  stills,  &c.  a particular 
description  of  the  process,  would  not,  it  is  pre- 
sumed, be  interesting  to  but  ver)  few  individ- 
uals. But  the  manner  of  reducing  the  oils  to 
the  state  in  which  they  are  more  generally 
sold,  and  is  distinguished  by  the  term  “ essen- 
ces” is  as  follows.  To  half  a pint  of  alcohol, 
add  one  ounce  of  any  of  the  essential  oi  s? 
(lemon,  cinnamon,  foxberry,  peppermint,  &c.) 
and  shake  them  together  ; set  the  mixture  in 
a warm  place  for  a few  minutes,  and  if  then 
any  opaque  or  milky  appearance  remains,  a 
little  more  alcohol  must  be  added.  When  this 
has  become  clear,  it  may  be  diluted  occasion- 
ally with  new  rum  The  essences  of  foxber- 
ry and  cinnamon  are  coloured  with  a few  drops 
of  tincture  of  red  saunders  , and  the  essence 
of  lemon,  with  tincture  of  turmeric. 

93  To  prepare  soda  wat!  r — Only  two 
articles  are  requisite  for  this  preparation  ; one 
of  which  is  super-carbonate  of  soda,  or  of  pot- 
ass sal  eratus,)  and  the  other  is  nitric  or  tar- 
taric acid  The  super-carbonates  are  formed 
by  passing  a stream  of  carbonic  acid  gas  •'  which 
is  produced  by  adding  muriatic  acid  to  pulver- 
ized marble)  through  a solution  of  soda  or  pot^ 
ass  in  water  ; — -then  evaporating  till  it  crystal- 
lizes- Citric  acid  is  prepared  from  the  juice 
ef  lemons;  and  tartaric  acid  (which  is  more 
generally  employed)  is  procured  from  super- 


78 


CURIOUS  ARTS® 


tartrate  of  potass.  But  these  being  common 
articles  of  commerce,  a more  minute  descrip- 
tion of  the  process  of  preparing  them,  may 
not,  in  this  place,  be  expedient.  The  com- 
pound called  soda-powders,  consists  of  about 
ten  grains  of  either  of  the  sub-carbonates,  with 
an  equal  quantity  of  either  of  the  acids,  in 
each  paper  ; this  compound  being  dissolved  in 
a glass  of  water,  produces  violent  efferves- 
cence, and  if  drank  oiT  at  the  time,  gives  the 
water  a smart  and  agreeable  acid  tase.  The 
salt  and  acid,  if  mixed  in  powder,  must  be 
kept  perfectly  dry  ; otherwise,  they  would 
act  on  each  other,  and  soon  be  spoiled.  On 
this  account,  they  are  frequently  prepared  in 
separate  papers,  and  sold  by  sets.  Soda- 
water  is  similarly  prepared  on  the  larger  scales 
th6  salts  and  acid  being  put  into  a cask  of  wa- 
ter, which  is  so  confined,  that  the  carbonic 
acid  can  have  no  other  vent  than  by  forcing 
out  the  ivater  through  a pipe  fixed  for  the  pur- 
pose with  a tube,  &c. 

94.  T©  PRODUCE  METALLIC  TREES.  Process  1 . 
—Mix  one  part  of  a saturated  solution  of  ni- 
trate of  silver,  with  twenty  parts  of  pure 
water,  and  pour  the  mixture  upon  two  parts 
of  mercury  in  a phial.  After  some  time  (the 
mercury  being  left  standing  quietly,)  the  bran- 
ches and  the  figure  of  a tree,  formed  of  brill- 
iant silver,  will  appear  to  groAV  from  the  mer- 
cury in  a very  beautiful  manner.  The  silver 


CURIOUS  ARTS. 


79 


in  solution  being  thus  robbed  of  its  oxigen  by 
the  metallic  mercury,  and  consequently  pre- 
cipitated, 

95  Process  2.— Dissolve  two  drachms  of 
acetate  of  lead,  in  six  ounces  of  water  ; fil- 
ter the  solution,  and  pour  it  into  a clean  wide 
phial.  Then  suspend  a granule  of  zinc,  by  a 
thread  or  wire  fastened  to  the  cork  of  the 
phial,  in  the  middle  of  the  solution,  and  place 
the  phial  where  it  will  not  be  disturbed.  Af- 
ter a few  hours  the  lead,  being  de-oxydized 
by  the  zinc,  will  be  precipitated  on  the  zinc, 
in  the  shape  of  leaves,  which  will  have  a 
very  brilliant  appearance. 

96.  To  tin  copper  by  boiling. — Boil  half 
a pound  of  granulated  tin,  and  six  ounces  of 
super  tartrate  of  potass  in  three  pints  of  wa- 
ter ; when  they  have  boiled  half  an  hour,  put 
in  any  piece  of  copper  ware,  and  continue  the 
boiling  fifteen  minutes  longer.  The  copper 
may  then  be  taken  out,  and  will  have  been 
handsomely  coated  with  tin. 

97.  A METAL  THAT  WILL  MELT  IN  HOT  WA- 
TER.— Melt  together  eight  parts  of  bismuth, 
five  of  lead  and  three  of  tin.  This  alloy, 
though  hard  and  brilliant,  when  cold,  is  so  ea- 
sily fusible  that  it  may  be  melted  on  a paper, 
being  held  over  the  flame  of  a candle.  Tea 
spoons  may  be  made  of  this  compound  metal, 


80 


CURIOUS  ARTS. 


which  may  be  melted  by  putting  them  in  a cup 
of  hot  tea. 

98  Illustration  of  calico  printing — - 
It  frequently  occurs,  that  substances  of  dif- 
ferent colours,  or  even  without  colour,  by 
corning  in  contact,  produce  colours  very  dif- 
ferent from  that  of  either  of  the  ingredients 
when  separate  : thus,  if  a sheet  of  paper  be 
striped  in  one  direction  with  a hair  pencil  dip- 
ped in  a solution  of  sub-carbonate  of  potass ; 
and  then  crossed  with  a solution  of  citric  acid, 
(juice  of  lemons,)  it  will  be  colourless  ; 
but  dip  it  in  a mixture  of  a weak  solution  of 
sulphate  of  iron,  and  infusion  of  nut  galls,  and 
it  will  instantly  become  a beautiful  plaid  ; the 
ground  being  purple,  striped  one  way  with 
black  and  crossed  with  white.  If  a similar 
paper  be  striped  with  sub  carbonate  of  potass, 
and  crossed  with  infusion  of  galls,  and  after- 
ward dim  ed  in  a solution  of  sulphate  of  iron, 
it  will  become  purple,  yellow,  black  and 
white.  Dip  a piece  of  white  calico  in  a cold 
solution  of  sulphate  of  iron,  and  let,  it  dry. 
Then  imprint  any  figures  upon  it  with  a strong 
solution  of  colourless  citric  acid,  and  let  this 
dry  also.  If  the  piece  be  then  well  washed 
in  warm  water,  and  afterwards  boiled  in  a de- 
coction of  logwood,  the  ground  will  be  dyed 
either  a slate  or  a black  colour,  according  to 
the  strength  of  the  metallic  solution,  while 
the  printed  figures  will  remain  beautifully 


CURIOUS  ART  So 


8! 


white.  In  a solution  of  two  parts  of  sub-car- 
bonate of  potass,  with  one  part  sulphate  of 
iron,  dip  a piece  of  white  cloth,  and  it  will 
be  changed  to  a yellow  ; dip  a piece  of  tur- 
meric yellow  cloth  in  the  same  solution,  and 
it  will  be  changed  to  crimson  red  ; a piece  of 
red  calico  by  the  same  means  will  be  changed 
to  brown  or  black,  and  it  is  not  improbable 
that  some  brown  or  black  colours  might  be 
materially  changed  by  the  same  compound  so- 
lution. 

99,  To  PREPARE  AN  IMITATION  OF  GOLD 
bronze.— Melt  two  ounces  of  tin,  and  mix  with 
it  one  ounce  of  mercury  ; when  this  is  cold  pul- 
verize it  and  add  one  ounce  of  muriate  of  am- 
monia, and  one  ounce  of  sulphur,  and  grind  them 
all  together.  Put  the  compound  in  a flask  and 
heat  it  in  a clear  fire  (carefully  avoiding  the 
fumes)  till  the  mercury  sublimes,  and  rises 
in  vapour.  When  the  vapour  ceases  to  rise, 
take  the  glass  from  the  fire.  A flaky  gold  col- 
ored powder  will  remain  in  the  flask,  which 
may  be  applied  to  ornamental  work  in  the 
manner  of  gold  bronze,  of  which  it  is  a tolera- 
ble imitation, 

100  To  PROCURE  THE  EXHILARATING  GAS. 
—Put  a quantity  of  nitrate  of  ammonia  into  a 
flask,  and  apply  the  heat  of  a lamp,  which 
must  be  gentle,  and  well  regulated  The 
salt  will  in  a short  time  liquify,  and  must  then 

H 


8£  CURIOUS  ARTS* 

be  kept  quietly  simmering,  avoiding  violent 
ebulition*  This  gas  may  be  collected  in  a 
bladder  containing  a small  quantity  of  water, 
and  should  be  allowed  to  stand  a few  hours, 
and  shifted  into  another  bladder,  or  silk  var- 
nished bag  before  it  is  used.  Though  this 
gas  is  not  fitted  to  support  life,  yet  it  may  be 
respired  for  a short  time,  and  the  effects  pro- 
duced by  it  upon  the  animal  frame,  are  its 
most  extraordinary  properties.  The  effects 
of  breathing  this  gas,  are  in  general,  highly 
pleasurable,  and  resemble  those  attendant  on 
the  agreeable  period  of  intoxication.  Exqui- 
site sensations  of  pleasure  ; an  irresistable 
propensity  to  laughter  ; a rapid  flow  of  vivid 
ideas  ; a strong  incitement  to  muscular  mo- 
tion, are  the  ordinary  feelings  produced  by  it. 
And  what  is  exceedingly  remarkable,  is,  that 
the  intoxication  thus  produced,  instead  of  be- 
ing succeeded  by  the  debility  subsequent  to 
intoxication  by  ardent  spirits,  does,  on  the 
contrary,  generally  render  the  person  who 
takes  it,  cheerful  and  high  spirited  for  the 
remainder  of  the  day. 

101.  Construction  of  a galvanic  pile 
or  battery. — -Procure  fifty  or  more  thin 
plates  of  copper,  and  the  same  number  of 
plates  of  zinc,  all  of  which  may  be  about  the 
size  of  a dollar,  but  not  so  thick.  The  cop- 
per and  zinc  plates,  may  be  either  cast  in 
moulds,  or  may  be  cut  out  of  rolled  plates  of 


CURIOUS  ARTS® 


83 


the  metals.  In  addition  to  the  plates  of  cop- 
per  and  zinc,  it  is  necessary  to  he  provided 
with  an  equal  number  of  pieces  of  woollen 
cloth,  rather  smaller  than  the  metallic  plates 
in  size.  Let  these  be  soaked  in  a solution  of 
muriate  of  soda,  till  they  have  thoroughly 
imbibed  it  ; then  take  them  out  of  the  solu- 
tion, and  squeeze  them  gentry,  to  force  out 
the  superabundant  water.  Then,  having  pro- 
vided a circular  piece  of  wood,  rather  lar- 
ger than  the  plates,  cover  it  with  tin  foik  and 
on  this  lay  a plate  of  zinc,  upon  that  a plate 
of  copper,  and  then  a piece  of  moistened 
cloth,  next  a plate  of  zinc,  &c.  Continue 
this  arrangement  of  zinc,  copper  and  cloth, 
till  all  the  pieces  that  have  been  provided  are 
laid  on.  As  the  pile  began  with  zinc  it  must 
be  concluded  with  copper.  This  pile  may 
be  braced  occasionally  with  strips  of  glass  to 
prevent  its  being  overthrown.  Fix  the  end  of 
a piece  of  metallic  wire,  in  contact  with  the 
base,  and  lay  the  end  of  another  piece  upon 
the  top  of  the  pile;  if  thus,  the  opposite 
ends  of  the  wires  be  brought  in  contact  with 
each  other,  or  if  they  are  connected  by  any 
conducting  body,  so  as  to  form  a circuit  of 
conductors,  the  pile  will  afford  a constant  and 
powerful  current  of  the  galvanic  fluid  through 
them  for  many  hours.  If  the  hands  be  mois- 
tened, and  one  of  them  applied  to  each  of  the 
w ires,  a shock  will  be  received.  Gold  and 
other  metals  have  been  melted,  and  even 


84 


CURIOUS  ARTS. 


burnt  ; and  potass,  soda  and  lime  have  been 
reduced  to  their  respective  metallic  states, 
by  being  made  to  form  part  of  a galvanic  cir- 
cuit, When  the  pile  is  not  in  use,  it  should 
be  taken  down,  which  will  preserve  it  from 
wear,  and  the  plates  will  require  to  be 
cleansed  occasionally,  which  may  be  easily 
done  by  diluted  muriatic  acid. 

102.  Construction  of  the  oxy-hydrogen 
blow-pipe. — This  useful  instrument  consists 
of  a cubical  vessel,  made  of  tin  plate,  being 
from  ten  to  twenty  inches  in  length,  breadth 
and  heighth.  The  inside  is  divided  into  four 
equal  apartments,  by  two  partitions,  crossing 
each  other  in  the  centre.  rl  he  two  front 
apartments  are  covered  at  the  tup,  and  each 
of  them  have  a tube  fixed  in  the  front  side, 
near  the  top,  with  a stopcock.  The  other 
apartments  are  open  at  the  top,  and  commu- 
nicate with  those  in  front,  by  a small  aper- 
ture near  the  bottom  of  each.  These  apart- 
ments being  all  filled  with  water,  those  in 
front  are  filled,  the  one  with  oxygen,  and  the 
other  with  hydrogen  gas,  which  is  done  by ' 
forcing  the  gases  into  them  through  the  tubes 
in  front,  which  causes  the  water  to  recede 
through  the  aperture  at  the  bottom,  and  con- 
sequently, part  of  the  water  is  forced  over 
the  top  of  the  other  apartments ; or  rather, 
may  run  off  through  small  tubes,  fixed  for  the 
purpose,  near  the  top,  similar  to  thoie  in 


CURIOUS  ARTS*. 


85 


front.  When  the  front  apartments  are  filled 
with  the  gases,  (which  may  be  known  by  the 
bubbling  in  the  others)  the  tubes  are  stopped, 
and  two  leaden  pipes  are  fixed  in  them,  the 
opposite  ends  of  which,  are  so  placed,  that 
the  two  streams  of  gas,  when  expelled  from 
the  gas  holders,  may  come  in  contact  very 
near  the  ends  of  the  pipes.  When  the  tubes 
are  open,  the  pressure  of  the  water  will  ex- 
pel the  gases,  and  will  consequently  settle, 
and  must  be  replenished,  s > as  to  keep  the 
apartments  nearly  full.  When  the  two 
streams  of  gas  are  ignited  at  the  point  of  con- 
tact, a flame  is  produced  of  sufficient  inten- 
sity to  burn  gold,  silver,  copper  or  tin,  with 
a very  brilliant  combustion. 

103.  To  MAKE  A DRY  PHOSPHORESCENT 
powder.— Take  some  thick  oyster  shells, 
wash  them,  and  calcine  by  keeping  them  red 
hot  in  an  open  fire  for  half  an  hour  : then,  se- 
lect the  clearest  and  whitest  parts,  and  re- 
duce them  to  powder.  Mix  three  parts  of 
this  powder,  with  one  of  flour  of  sulphur  ; 
fill  a crucible  with  this  compound,  pressing 
or  beating  it  down  as  hard  and  solid  as  may 
be,  without  breaking  the  crucible.  Set  the 
crucible  in  the  fire,  and  heat  it  moderately  at 
first,  but  increase  the  heat  gradually  for  an 
hour,  in  which  time  it  must  approach  nearly 
to  a white  heat.  Then  let  it  cool,  and  again 
select  from  the  mass,  the  whitest  and  purest 
h 2 


86 


CARIOUS  ARTS. 


parts,  which  must  be  preserved  in  a phial 
with  a glass  stopper.  This  powder  has  the 
peculiar  property  of  imbibing  the  rays  of  the 
sun  in  the  day  time,  and  emitting  them  again 
in  the  night  ; or  if  the  phial  containing  it,  be 
exposed  for  a few  minutes  to  the  direct  rays 
of  the  sun  and  then  carried  into  a dark  room, 
light  enough  will  be  evolved  to  render  it  dis- 
tinctly visible. 

104.  Curious  experiment  of  precipita- 
tion —Set  live  glasses  on  the  table,  and 
nearly  fill  one  of  them  with  a solution  of  sul- 
phate of  iron ; and  another  with  a solution  of 
sulphate  of  copper  ; a third  with  a solution 
of  nitrate  of  bismuth  ; pour  into  the  fourth., 
a solution  of  nitro-muriate  of  cobalt,  and  into 
the  fifth  a solution  of  acetate  of  lead,  or  sul- 
phate of  zinc.  These  liquid  solutions  may 
all  be  diluted  so  as  to  be  colourless.  Then 
pour  into  each  glass,  a few  drops  of  a colour- 
less solution  of  prussiate  of  potass.  The  con- 
tents of  the  first  glass  will  be  instantly  chang- 
ed to  a full  blue  colour  ; those  of  the  second 
to  a reddish  brown  ; those  of  the  third,  to  a 
yellow  ; the  fourth  to  a green,  and  the  fifth 
to  a white.  Thus  five  distinct  colours  will  be 
given,  by  the  addition  of  one  colourless  solu- 
tion. 

105.  To  MAKE  A BEAUTIFUL  SOFT  GLASS 

for  jewelry. — Take  six  ounces  of  clean  fine 


CURIOUS  ARTS® 


87 

white  sand,  three  ounces  of  red  lead,  three 
ounces  of  pure  sub-carbonate  of  potass,  one 
ounce  of  nitrate  of  potass,  half  an  ounce  of 
borate  of  soda,  and  two  drachms  of  arsenic  ; 
mix  and  pound  them  all  together.  Put  the 
compound  in  a crucible,  and  set  it  in  a com- 
mon fire,  often  stirring  it  with  an  iron  rod,  till 
it  is  well  melted,  and  becomes  transparent. 
This  compound  will  liquify  very  easily  with- 
out any  great  heat,  if  the  sand  is  fine,  (which 
sometimes  requires  to  be  ground  or  pounded 
in  a glass  or  flint  mortar,)  and  if  it  be  kept 
melted  awhile,  will  become  beautifully  trans- 
parent, and  may  be  cast  or  blown  in  the  man- 
ner of  other  glass.  This  glass  may  be  chang- 
ed to  a red  or  ruby  colour,  by  adding  and  fus- 
ing together  with  it,  a small  quantity  of  fine- 
ly powdered  precipitate  of  gold,  (gold  pre- 
cipitated from  solution  in  nitro-muriatic  acid 
by  the  addition  of  tin.)  It  may  be  also  chang- 
ed to  blue  by  the  addition  of  zaffre,  (an  ore  of 
cobalt,)  and  magnesia  : a green  colour  may  be 
given  by  a precipitate  of  copper  ; and  yellow 
by  calcined  iron,  and  white  by  calcined  bones. 
This  subject  is  treated  of  largely  in  the  Hand- 
maid of  the  Arts , to  which  tor  further  infor- 
mation on  the  subject,  the  reader  is  referred. 

106.  Composition  of  various  kinds  of 
glass.— The  best  flint  glass  is  composed  of 
129  lbs.  of  white  sand,  50  lbs.  of  red  lead, 
40  lbs.  of  sub-carbonate  of  potass,  20  lbs.  of 


88 


CURIOUS  ARTS. 


nitrate  of  potass,  and  5 oz.  of  magnesia 
The  best  crown  glass  is  composed  of  60  lbs. 
of  white  sand,  30  lbs.  of  sub-carbonate  of 
potass,  15  lbs  of  nitrate  of  potass,  1 lb.  of 
borate  of  soda  and  \ lb.  of  arsenic.  The 
composition  of  common  green  window  glass, 
is  120  lbs.  of  white  sand,  80  lbs.  of  sub-car- 
bonate of  potass,  60  lbs.  of  wood  ashes,  20 
lbs.  of  muriate  of  soda  and  5 lbs.  of  arsenic. 
The  composition  for  looking  glass  plates,  is  60 
lbs-  of  clean  white  sand,  25  lbs.  of  purified 
sub-carbonate  of  potass,  15  lbs,  of  nitrate  of 
potass,  and  7 lbs.  of  borate  of  soda.  Common 
green  bottle  glass  is  made  from  200  lbs,  of 
wood  ashes,  and  100  lbs.  of  sand.  The  ma- 
terials for  making  glass,  is  first  reduced  to 
powder  ; then  mixed  and  exposed  to  a strong 
heat,  in  suitable  pots  and  furnaces,  till  the 
whole  mass  liquifies  and  becomes  thoroughly 
commixed  and  transparent. 

107.  Composition  of  various  alloys.— 
Brass  is  composed  of  two  parts  of  copper  to 
one  of  zinc  ; or  copper  and  calamine,  *an  ore 
of  zinc,)  equal  quantities.  Pinchbeck  con- 
sists of  from  five  to  ten  parts  copper,  and  one 
of  zinc.  Bell  metal  is  composed  of  three 
parts  copper  and  one  of  tin.  Gun  metal,  nine 
parts  copper  and  one  of  tin.  Tombac,  six- 
teen parts  copper,  one  part  zinc  and  one  of 
tin  The  composition  of  pewter  is  seven 
pounds  of  tin,  one  of  lead,  four  ounces  of 


CURIOUS  ARTS. 


89 


copper  and  two  of  zinc.  That  of  type-metal 
is  nine  parts  lead,  two  parts  antimony  and  one 
of  bismuth.  Solder,  two  parts  of  lead  with 
one  of  tin.  Queen’s  metal,  nine  parts  of  tin, 
one  of  bismuth,  one  of  antimony  and  one  of 
lead.  Jewel  gold  is  composed  of  twenty-five 
parts  gold,  four  parts  silver,  and  seven  parts 
fine  copper.  In  forming  metallic  compound 
or  alloys,  it  is  proper  to  melt  such  of  the  in- 
gredients as  are  the  least  fusible  first,  and  af- 
terward add  the  others,  stirring  them  briskly 
till  they  are  thoroughly  commixed. 

108.  To  PRODUCE  VARIOUS  KINDS  OF  GAS. 
- — To  three  or  four  ounces  of  pulverized  chalk 
or  marble,  moistened  in  a flask,  with  an  equal 
quantity  of  water,  add  one  ounce  of  sulphuric 
acid  carbonic  acid  gas  will  be  evolved 
in  abundance,  and  will  rise  through  the  neck 
of  the  flask,  and  may  be  conducted  by  pipes, 
to  any  proper  receiver.  Instead  of  the  mar- 
ble or  chalk,  substitute  granulated  zinc  ; — in 
this  case  hydrogen  gas  will  be  evolved  ; but 
this  may  require  a larger  proportion  of  water. 
Pour  sulphuric  acid  upon  a similar  quantity  of 
dry  muriate  of  soda  muriatic  acid  gas  will 
be  rapidly  evolved.  Proceed  in  the  same 
manner  wTith  a similar  quantity  of  red  lead,— 
apply  the  heat  of  a lamp,  and  oxygen  gas  will 
be  produced.  Put  into  the  flask,  two  or  three 
ounces  of  lean  beef,  cut  into  small  pieces  ; 
pour  over  them  one  ounce  of  nitric  acid  dk 


90 


CURIOUS  ARTS. 


lated  with  three  ounces  of  water  ; apply  the 
heat  of  a lamp,  and  nitrogen  gas  will  be  lib- 
erated. Powder  separately,  equal  quanti- 
ties of  muriate  of  ammonia  and  newly  burnt 
lime  ; put  them  together  into  the  flask  and 
apply  gentle  heat  ; ammoniac al  gas  will  be 
evolved.  Pour  an  ounce  of  nitric  acid,  dilut- 
ed with  five  times  its  weight  of  water,  upon 
one  ounce  of  shreds  or  turnings  of  copper  ; 
nitrous  gass  will  be  rapidly  evolved.  Grind 
three  parts  of  muriate  of  soda  with  two  parts  of 
red  lead  ; introduce  this  mixture  into  the  flask, 
and  add  two  parts  of  sulphuric  acid,  diluted 
with  an  equal  quantity  of  water  ; apply  a gen- 
tle heat  and  chlorine  gas  will  be  evolved. 
Note. — When  either  of  the  last  mentioned 
gases  are  produced,  great  caution  is  requisite 
that  they  do  not  escape  into  the  room,  in  any 
considerable  quantity,  as  their  action  on  the 
lungs  is  exceedingly  injurious* 

109.  Various  chem  cal  tests. — When 
water  is  suspected  to  hold  any  foreign  sub- 
stance in  solution,  various  means  may  be  used 
to  detect  and  ascertain  the  quality  of  the  sub- 
stances combined  ; thus,  acids  may  be  detect- 
ed by  immersing  m the  water,  a slip  of  litmus 
colored  paper,  which  if  acid  be  present,  will 
be  changed  to  red.  In  the  same  manner,  al- 
kalies may  be  detected  by  a strip  of  turmer- 
ic yellow  paper,  which  will  be  also  changed 
to  red  by  alkalies  These  tests  are  sensible 
to  the  presence  of  an  acid  or  alkali  in  the  pro- 


CURIOUS  ARTS. 


91 


portion  of  one  to  ten  thousand.  Iron  may  be 
detected  by  a drop  of  infusion  of  galls,  which 
will  give  to  the  water  (if  iron  be  present)  a 
brown  tinge.  A drop  of  sulphuric  acid,  pre- 
cipitates barites  in  the  form  of  a white  pow- 
der. Clear  transparent  lime-water  (water  in 
which  lime  has  been  slaked  and  then  suffered 
to  settle)  will  indicate  the  presence  of  car- 
bonic acid  by  a milky  whiteness.  On  the 
same  principle,  a solution  of  super-carbonate 
of  potass  will  detect  lime.  A few  drops  of 
nitrate  of  silver  will  instantly  discover  muri- 
atic acid,  by  a white  flaky  precipitate.  Mu- 
riatic acid,  consequently,  is  a good  test  for  sil- 
ver. Acetate  of  lead,  in  solution,  is  a test 
for  sulphureted  hydrogen,  which  occasions  a 
precipitate  of  a black  colour.  Nitrate  of  mer- 
cury is  an  excellent  test  for  ammonia,  one 
part  of  which,  with  30,000  parts  of  water  is 
indicated  by  a blackish  yellow  tinge  on  adding 
the  test.  Liquid  ammonia  is  a very  sensible 
test  for  copper,  with  which  it  strikes  a fine 
blue  colour.  Nitro  muriate  of  gold  will  dis- 
cover the  presence  of  tin,  by  a beautiful  pur- 
ple precipitate.  Nitro  muriate  of  tin  is  on 
the  same  principle,  an  excellent  test  for  gold. 

110.  Sundry  experiments.— Rub  together 
a little  dry  powdered  allum,  and  acetate  of 
lead  ; both  will  become  fluid  To  a saturated 
solution  of  muriate  of  lime,  add  a saturated 
solution  of  sub  carbonate  of  potass,  (both  trans- 
parent liquids  ;)  the  mixture  will  be  nearly 


92 


CURIOUS  ARTS* 


solid.  Rub  together  a little  pure  white  calo- 
mel (sublimed  mercury)  and  pure  white  amo- 
nia  (being  moistened  ;)  both  will  become 
intensely  black.  Fill  a flask  nearly  half  full  of 
water,  and  apply  heat  till  it  boils  ; take  it 
from  the  fire  and  (when  it  has  done  boil- 
ing) cork  it  ; pour  cold  water  upon  the  flask, 
and  the  water  inside  will  re-commence  boil- 
ing. Fill  a glass  with  water,  and  lay  a piece 
of  paper  upon  the  top  of  it  ; place  your  hand 
upon  the  paper,  and  invert  the  glass  ; the 
hand  may  be  removed  and  the  glass  may  be 
suspended  in  that  position  by  a thread,  and  the 
water  will  not  be  spilled.  Expose  a piece  of 
ice  to  the  action  of  (cold)  muriatic  gas  ; the 
ice  will  be  instantly  melted.  Drop  a piece 
of  phosphuret  of  lime,  into  a glass  of  water  ; 
bubbles  will  soon  rise,  and  on  reaching  the 
surface  of  the  water,  will  spontaneously  ex- 
plode. Apply  the  end  of  a roll  of  brimstone 
to  a hot  bar  of  iron  ; a part  of  the  iron  will  be 
instantly  melted,  and  will  fall.  Write  with 
diluted  sulphuric  acid,  on  paper  that  has  been 
coloured  brown  by  a mixture  of  sulphate  of 
iron,  and  infusion  of  galls  ; the  writing  will  be 
white.  Moisten  the  under  lip,  and  lay  upon 
it  a piece  of  silver  money,  (not  less  than  a 
twenty  cent  piece)  with  the  edge  of  it  be- 
neath the  tongue  ; lay  a piece  of  zinc,  of  near- 
ly an  equal  size,  upon  the  tongue,  and  bring 
the  edges  of  the  pieces  of  metal  into  contact  ; 
you  will  instantly  drop  the  money* 


gtyWttirfjr. 


A catalogue  of  the  various  articles  mention- 
ed in  the  preceding  pages,  with  the  prices, 
explanations,  &c. 

05*  The  articles  which  have  this  mark  * prefixed,  may 
be  procured  at  135,  Washington-street,  Boston. 


Acetate  of  cobalt,  produced  by 
digesting  the  oxide  of  cobalt  in 
strong  vinegar. 

* Acetate  of  lead,  (sugar  of  lead,) 
procured  by  dissolving  white 
lead  in  vinegar,  and  evaporating, 

* Acetic  acid,  vinegar  concentrated 
by  distillation, 

* Alcohol,  rectified  spirit  of  wine, 

* Alum,  sulphate  of  al amine  and 
potass, 

* Ammonia,  (hartshorn)  a volatile 
alkali, 

* Antimony,  a dark  porous  metal, 

* Bees  wax,  a yellow  resinous  sub- 
stance procured  from  honey,  or 
honey- combs, 


Cis. 


OZ . $ 

pt.  25 
pt.  25 

oz . 3 

03.  12 

02T.  6 


oz . 


94 


APPENDIX. 


* Bismuth,  (tin  glass)  a reddish 
white  metal, 

* Boracic  acid,  procured  by  adding 
sulphuric  acid  to  a hot  solution 
ot  borax  ; the  acid  crystallises, 

* Borate  of  soda,  or  sub-borate  of 
soda,  (borax)  is  brought  from  the 
East-Indies  in  an  impure  state 
called  tincal, 

Burnish-gold-size,  and  burnishers, 
may  be  had  ot  Bittle  and  Coop- 
er, Pemberton’s-hili,  Boston,  pri- 
ces various. 

* Camphor,  obtained  from  a species 
of  laurel  tree, 

* Carbonate  of  copper,  (French 
green)  produced  by  adding  a so- 
lution of  super-carbonate  of  so- 
da, to  a hot  solution  of  sulphate* 
of  copper, 

* Carbonate  of  lead,  (white  lead) 
is  formed  by  exposing  thin  sheets 
of  lead  to  the  vapour  of  vine- 
gar, after  which  they  abstract  the 
carbonic  acid  from  the  atmos- 
phere, 

* Carbonate  of  strontia,  a na- 
tive mineral. 


02 . 12 


02 , 100 


oz*  6 


02,  12 


lb,  50 


lb.  1$ 

02,  50 


APPENDIX. 


Carbonate  of  lime,  (marble,  chalk) 
a native  earth. 

* Chlorate  of  potass,  procured  by 
passing  a current  of  chlorine  gas 
through  a solution  of  pearl  ash, 

* Chrome  yellow,  a pigment,  is 
formed  by  the  combination  of  a 
metallic  substance  with  the  chro- 
mic acid, 

* Cobalt,  (Zaffre)  a metal  of  a 
reddish  grey  colour  ; when  expos- 
ed to  a gentle  heat,  it  becomes 
oxidized  and  takes  the  form  of  a 
black  powder, 

* Citric  acid,  procured  from  lem- 
ons, limes,  &c., 

* Calomel,  white  sublimate  of  mer- 
cury, 

* Fluate  of  lime,  (fluor  spar)  is 
found  in  abundance  in  Derbyshire, 
England,  its  acid  constituent  has 
the  peculiar  property  of  dissolv- 
ing glass, 

* Frankfort  black,  which  takes 
its  name  from  Frankfort,  in  Ger- 
many, is  manufactured  from  the 
lees  of  wine, 


^96 


APPENDIX. 


* Gamboge,  a yellow  opaque  gum, 
or  mucilage, 

* Glue,  (gelatine)  a jelly  procur- 
ed from  skins  of  animals, 

* Gold  bronze,  gold  in  fine  pow- 
der, 

* Gold  leaf,  thin  laminas  of  gold. 

* Gum  arabic,  a mucilaginous  sub- 
stance that  exudes  from  certain 
trees  in  Arabia, 

* Gum  asphaltum,  a bitumen,  or 
mineral  pitch. 

* Gum  copal,  a hard  transparent 
resin, 

* Gum  ELASTic(indian  rubber,  caout- 
chouc) exudes  from  trees  in  the 
West-Indies, 

* Gum  shellac,  a compound,  res- 
inous substance,  procured  from 
the  nests,  or  cells  of  an  insect, 

* Lake,  (drop  lake)  a rose  col- 
oured pigment,  prepared  from 
brazil  wood, 

* Lead,  a brown  heavy  metal, 

Lime,  an  oxide  of  calcium,  is  pro- 
cured by  calcining  lime  stone, 
marble  or  chalk 


Cts . 

oz . 16 

lb.  25 

pwt.  75 
book  45 

oz.  6 
oz.  8 
lb . 40 

oz.  8 

oz.  6 

oz.  200 
lb.  n 


APPENDIX. 


91 


* Linseed  oil,  is  expressed  from 
ground  flaxseed, 

* Litharge,  (gold  litharge)  an  ox- 
ide of  lead, 

* Mercury,  (quick  silver)  a metal 
that  remains  fluid  in  the  common 
temperature  of  the  atmosphere, 

* Muriate  of  ammonia,  (sal  ammoni- 
ac) is  formed  by  adding  muriatic 
acid  to  liquid  ammonia,  evapora- 
ting, &c., 

Muriate  of  soda,  (culinary  salt)  is 
procured  by  evaporating  the 
water  of  the  ocean. 

* Muriate  of  strontia,  procured 
by  dissolving  native  carbonate  of 
strontia,  in  muriatic  acid,  and 
evaporating, 

Muriate  of  lime,  formed  by  e- 
vaporating  a solution  of  marble 
in  muriatic  acid. 

* Muriatic  acid,  (marine  acid,  spir- 
it of  salt)  is  extracted  from  sea- 
salt, 

* Nitrate  of  ammonia,  procured  by 
dissolving  carbonate  of  ammonia 
(common  smelling  salts)  in  nitric 
acid, 

I 2 


Caw 

ft  1§ 
QZ.  4 

oz.  8 
oz.  S 


oz%  15 


oz.  12 


oz,  20 


98 


APPENDIX. 


* Nitrate  of  potass,  (nitre,  salt-  Cts. 


petre)  may  be  procured  by  add- 
ing nitric  acid  to  a solution  of 
sub  carbonate  of  potass,  and  crys- 


tallizing  by  evaporation. 

oz 

3 

* Nitrate  of  strontia,  procured 
the  same  as  the  muriate, 

* Nitric  acid,  (aquafortis)  is  ob- 

oz. 

75 

tained  by  distilling  two  parts  of 
sulphuric  acid,  together  witbL 
one  part  of  salt-petre, 

oz. 

12 

* Nut  galls,  are  formed  on  the 

leaves  of  a species  of  oak. 

oz. 

e 

* Olive  oil,  (sweet  oil,) 

* Oil  of  cinnamon,  extracted  from 

oz. 

3 

cinnamon  by  distillation, 

oz. 

75 

* Oil  of  rosemary,  procured  also 
by  distillation, 

* Orange  lead,  a scarlet  pigment 

oz. 

25 

similar  to  red  lead, 

* Phosphorus,  a simple  substance 

oz. 

3 

procured  from  bones ; its  greatest 
peculiarity  is  extraordinary  com- 
bustibility, 

oz. 

o 

o 

04 

* Phosphuret  of  lime,  a combina- 

tion of  lime  and  phosphorus, 

oz. 

200 

* Plumbago,  (black  lead)  a carburet 
of  iron, 


lb.  16 


APPENDIX* 


99 


Potassium,  the  metallic  base  of  Cts. 


potass,  may  be  readily  obtained 
from  pearl  ash  by  any  one  who 
has  a galvanic  apparatus. 

* Prussiate  of  iron,  ( prusssan  blue) 

may  be  formed  by  adding  prus- 
siate  of  potass,  to  a solution  of 
copperas,  oz . 25 

* Prussiate  of  potass,  a combina- 
tion of  potass  and  prussic  acid,  oz . 50 

* Pumice  stone,  lb.  12 

* Red  lead,  (minium)  ^is  obtained 
by  melting  lead  in  an  open  ves- 

-A 

sel,  and  exposing  it  in  that  state 
to  the  action  of  the  atmospheric 


air, 

* Red  ochre,  (spanish  brown)  a 


oz.  3 


native  oxide  of  iron, 

* Rosin,  the  resinous  part  of  tur- 


lb.  6 


pentine, 

* Silver  bronze, 

* Silver  leaf, 

* Slip  blue,  (wet  blue)  an  aqueous 


lb.  6 


pwt.  50 
book  30 


preparation  of  prussian  blue, 

* Spirits  of  turpentine,  (oil  of 


lb.  30 


turpentine)  is  procured  by  distill- 
ing common  or  crude  turpentine ; 
the  residuum  is  rosin, 


Pt,  is 


100 


APPENDIX. 


* Sub  acetate  of  copper,  (verdi- 

CtS m 

gris,) 

* Sub  carbonate  of  potass,  (pearl- 

oz . 

3 

ash)  potass  refined  by  calcina- 
tion, 

lb. 

12 

* Sulphate  of  copper,  (blue  vitriol, 

roman  vitrol) 

oz. 

3 

* Sulphate  of  iron,  ( copefas, 
green  vitriol,) 

Sulphate  ®f  lime,  (plaister  of  par- 

oz. 

6 

is,  alabaster,  gypsum.) 

* Sulphate  of  zinc,  (white  vitriol.) 

oz. 

3 

* Sulphur  (brimstone)  is  general- 

ly found  combined  with  ores  of 
metals, 

oz. 

3 

* Sulphuric  acid,  (oil  of  vitro!)  the 

condensed  vapour  of  burning 
sulphur, 

oz. 

16 

* Sulphuric  ether,  procured  by 

distilling  alcohol  with  sulphuric 
acid, 

OZ. 

25' 

* Super  carbonate  of  potass  (sal 

eratus)  is  formed  by  passing  a 
current  of  carbonic  add  gas, 
through  a solution  of  pearl  ash 

oz. 

3 

* Super  carbonate  of  soda,  may  be 

prepared  in  the  same  manner 
from  the  sub-carbonate, 

oz. 

12 

APPENDIX,  101 

* Super  tartrate  of  potass  Cts. 

(cream  of  tartar)  is  found  en- 
crusted on  the  sides  of  casks  in 

which  wine  has  been  kept,  oz . 4 

* Tartaric  acid,  procured  from 

cream  of  tartar,  oz.  12 

* Terra-de-sienna,  an  oxide  of 

iron  that  becomes  dark  red  by 
burning,  oz.  6 

* Tin,  (grain,  or  granulated  tin)  oz.  12 

* Tin  foil,  metallic  tin  rolled  to 

thin  laminas  or  sheets  like  paper,  oz.  12 

* Turmeric,  the  root  of  a vegeta- 

able,  oz.  3 

* Umber,  a brown  earth  that  be- 
comes nearly  black  by  burning,  oz.  3 

* Venice  turpentine,  oz.  6 


* Vermillion,  a sulphuret  of 
mercury,  is  sometimes  found  na- 
tive, but  may  be  procured  by 
grinding  sulphur  and  mercury 
together,  and  heating  them,  first 
in  an  open  vessel,  till  the  mix- 
ture takes  a violet  colour  ; and 
afterward  in  a flask  or  matrass,  oz.  12 

* Whiting,  (Spanish  white)  refill- 
ed, lb.  12 


102 


APPENDIX, 


* Yellow  ochre,  (spruce  yellow)  Cts. 

an  oxide  oi  iron.  lb.  12 

Zinc,  (spelter)  a metal  of  which, 
with  copper,  brass  is  made,  oz.  3 


